The jury is currently deliberating in the trial of a school bus aide who is facing charges related to the tragic death of a disabled child.
Amanda Davila, a 27-year-old bus monitor, bravely took the stand to defend herself on Thursday.
Prosecutors say Davila was texting and using social media rather than checking on 6-year-old Farj Williams.
Williams slumped down in her wheelchair, and the strap that held it to the school bus tightened around her neck, choking her.
Davila told jurors that she should have checked on Williams and did not follow training rules, but she does not deserve the punishment she could face.
“I made a mistake. You guys are trying to put me in jail for 10-20 years on a mistake. I’m partially to blame but there’s other people to blame too, not just me,” Davila said.
Davila and her attorney, Michael Policastro, assert that her sister or mother mistakenly strapped 6-year-old Williams into her wheelchair, causing her to collapse.
The shoulder harness on the bus narrowed her airway.
“Did you notice that she wasn’t harnessed in correctly?” Policastro said.
“I didn’t notice until we were at school,” Davila said.
Prosecutors said there is no evidence the family was at fault.
“In the video you can tell she was sliding down so it wasn’t buckled in,” Davila said.
“But you said you didn’t look at her when you got on the bus?” Michael McLauglin, assistant prosecutor said.
“No I didn’t,” Davila said.
The jury watched the entire bus ride to Claremont Elementary School, during which Davila sat in front of Williams, always on her phone with earbuds in both ears, and never checked on her.
Prosecutors claim her only responsibility that day was to ensure Williams’ well-being, which she failed to do.
“This is the bodycam. That’s what she would have seen if she was sitting where she was supposed to,” Prosecutors said.
A nurse at Claremont performed CPR on the infant, but she died later in the hospital.
Davila faces charges of aggravated manslaughter and endangering the welfare of a child for the incident on a school bus in 2023.
Williams’ mother said she will be waiting at the courthouse while the jury deliberates.
“It is heartbreaking and it’s disturbing to keep reliving it and to have to physically watch my daughter suffer,” Williams’ mother said.
