The bus crash on September 12, captured on news footage, resulted in injuries to both drivers and several children (KMSP).
A Minnesota woman is facing felony charges after being accused by the police of using Snapchat in the moments leading up to a school bus crash that injured over 20 children.
On December 26, Svea Snickers, 19, faced charges for five felonies and 17 gross misdemeanor counts of criminal vehicular operation. This came after a crash on September 12 where she collided with a bus, resulting in injuries to herself, the bus driver, and 21 children. The children, with the youngest being 5 years old, suffered mild to moderate injuries, fortunately, no fatalities were reported.
Snickers, driving her Toyota RAV4, disregarded a stop sign and collided with the side of a school bus, resulting in the bus rolling over into a nearby ditch. Police reports indicate that Snickers had taken a screenshot on Snapchat just moments before dialing 911 to report the incident.
Snickers sustained the most severe injuries in the accident, and the school bus driver, aged 52, was transported to the hospital via ambulance. According to the charging documents, 10 children, aged 5 to 17, were also taken to the hospital. Among them, five were diagnosed with concussions or broken bones, while the others suffered from minor scrapes, cuts, bruising, and pain.
According to charging documents acquired by Minneapolis ABC affiliate KSTP, Snickers reportedly confessed to Minnesota State Troopers during an interview one week after the accident that she was using her phone at the time of impact. To be more precise, she allegedly stated that she was sending a “voice text” on Snapchat. Furthermore, she admitted to making a video. Authorities obtained a search warrant to examine her phone, revealing that Snickers had taken a screenshot on Snapchat just moments before 911 calls were placed to report the crash.
According to the criminal complaint obtained by Fox affiliate KMSP, Snickers was returning home from her boyfriend’s house when she sent a Snapchat text to a friend. Initially, she claimed to have sent the text while driving on a different road before the accident occurred. However, her cellphone data indicated that the text was actually sent much closer to the time of the crash. Additionally, Snickers has been charged with using an app while driving.
According to Minnesota State Troopers, the vehicle data from Snickers’ revealed that she was driving at a speed of 48-53 mph and did not apply her brakes at the stop sign.
Snickers has been summoned and is expected to appear in court on January 30th.
