KINGMAN — The man arrested for allegedly causing a high profile school bus accident involving three dozen Kingman Unified School District (KUSD) students and five adults pleaded not guilty during his April 21 arraignment in Tucson.
Nicolas Luis Rodriguez, 31, Marana, is charged in a 50-count indictment returned April 14 by a Pima County Grand jury. He is facing 39 aggravated assault-related charges, 9 counts of endangerment, criminal damage and driving under the influence.
KUSD superintendent Gretchen Dorner said four faculty members and the bus driver were traveling with 36 high school students to a Future Business Leaders of America conference in Tucson when the accident occurred April 1 on Interstate 10, near Tangerine Road in Marana.
The Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS) said the bus and the SUV operated by Rodriguez were both southbound when the vehicle struck the driver’s side of the bus at about 1:39 p.m. DPS said the bus rolled on its side in the median of the interstate.
Many aboard the bus were treated for minor injuries at the scene. DPS said 21 students and four adults were transported to hospitals for treatment and assessment, while four were hospitalized with serious injuries.
Dorner said none of the accident victims remain hospitalized, though several are undergoing rehabilitation and therapy. She said the bus driver was not responsible for the accident and credited him with doing all the right things at the scene, including caring for the injured.
Dorner said she is grateful for the professional and compassionate manner the incident, investigation and prosecution are being handled by southern Arizona authorities, and that there were no fatalities.
“These are our staff members and our students, and part of our community,” Dorner said. She said she’ll be focused on the case prosecution and pursuit of justice.
CT Revere, special assistant to Pima County Attorney Laura Conover, said that Rodriguez remains in custody with bond set at $100,000. He said the defendant will next appear for a case management hearing on May 12.
