Will criminal charges be filed in fatal Phenix City school bus crash? Police make decision
No criminal charges will be filed in the case involving the August crash of a Phenix City school bus that killed Central High School senior Chris Rogers, who was driving the other vehicle.
Phenix City Police Capt. Darryl Williams confirmed that decision in an email Monday to the Ledger-Enquirer.
“The police department concludes all activity with this case,” he said. “It is closed based on the AG recommendation.”
In a Dec. 2 letter to Williams, Alabama Assistant Attorney General John Kachelman said, “As a result of the traffic incident, Christopher Rogers sustained fatal injuries. The State has reviewed all the evidence collected during the course of the investigation. At this time, this matter will be closed without further action and we will not be pursuing any criminal charges in the case.”
The support for Chris was so strong that his funeral was conducted across the Chattahoochee River at Cascade Hills Church in Columbus to accommodate the crowd.
A GoFundMe account surpassed its $5,000 goal to help his immediate family pay for the funeral and his extended family to pay for travel expenses to attend.
Chris was driving a 2012 Ford Focus south on Highway 165 around 4:30 p.m. Aug. 9 when the bus turned onto the highway from Misty Forest Drive, at the entrance to the Misty Forest subdivision, according to a news release from the Phenix City Police Department. The passenger in the car was treated and released.
The bus had three students and one monitor along with the driver, Phenix City Schools superintendent Randy Wilkes said at the time. No injuries among the passengers and driver of the bus were reported.
Asked for his reaction to the news that no criminal charges will be filed, Wilkes told the L-E in an email Monday, “I have not heard of an official report regarding the accident and therefore cannot comment.”
Wilkes, however, did say the bus driver, Richard Towles Smith, is now retired after 14 years working for the school system.
“Mr. Richard Smith was an exemplary employee,” Wilkes said. “While working with Phenix City Schools, he was a kind, genuine and compassionate person.”
This story was originally published December 9, 2019 at 12:39 PM.
