Licking County Judge David Branstool has announced the verdict of Jacob McDonald, the truck driver facing 26 charges for the deaths of three high school students, two chaperones, and a teacher in the Tusky Valley bus tragedy.
McDonald was found guilty of six misdemeanor counts of vehicular homicide and not guilty of the most serious charges he faced.
He was facing six counts of aggravated vehicular homicide, felonies of the third degree, nine counts of vehicular assault, felonies of the fourth degree, and 11 counts of assault, misdemeanors of the first degree.
Barnstool said McDonald was criminally responsible for the accident, but the state did not prove his actions that day were reckless.
"At various points in our lives we are all just a few feet or a few seconds away from disaster," said Branstool. "That's what happened here."
WATCH THE VERDICT:
Some family members of the victims left the courtroom outraged.
Danielle Goedel's daughter Brynn was seriously injured in the crash. She says the verdict did not bring justice or closure.
"It's in God's hands," she said. "We prayed before. That's all we can do. Support each other.
"Just don't understand how it's a misdemeanor."
McDonald's attorney Chris Brigdon felt this was a case of negligence, but he also feels for the families.
"I have teenagers myself," he said. "I can't even fathom that sort of loss. We tried everything within the confines of the law. Everybody is entitled to the best possible defense."
What happened?
On the morning of Nov. 14, 2023, a charter bus carrying Tusky Valley High School band members headed to an event in Columbus was involved in a chain-reaction crash on I-70 in Licking County.
Investigators said a semi-truck driven by McDonald slammed into an SUV and then the bus.
All three people in the SUV were killed: high school teacher Dave Kennat, 56, of Navarre, parent chaperone Kristy Gaynor, 39, of Zoar, and parent chaperone Shannon Wigfield, 45, of Bolivar.
Three students on the bus died: John Mosley, 18, of Mineral City, JD Worrell, 18, of Bolivar, and Katelyn Owens, 15, of Mineral City.
The school and community have continued to honor those who died in the crash.
RELATED: 1 year after Tusky Valley bus tragedy: Community plans event to honor victims
