An Indiana woman who was responsible for the deaths of three children when she crashed her pickup truck into them in October of 2018 has been sentenced to four years in prison.
According to a report appearing on the Fox 10 website in Phoenix, Alyssa Shepherd, 25, was sentenced on October 18th for her role in the crash, which 9-year-old Alivia Stahl and her 6-year-old twin brothers, Xzavier and Mason Ingle.
Also critically injured in the crash was Maverik Lowe, 11, who has had to undergo some 20 surgeries.
The accident happened when Shepherd attempted to pass a school bus that was stopped with lights and stop sign arm engaged that was letting the children off the bus along State Road 25 in Rochester, Indiana.
Shepherd claimed she saw the lights but was unaware that the stopped vehicle was a school bus until the children were right in front of her pickup truck. Unable to stop, she hit the children.
The Fulton County Court has sentenced Shepherd to 4 years in prison, three years of house arrest, and three years of probation. Shepherd has also lost her license for a total of 10 years.
During the sentencing portion of the trial, the children’s mother, Brittany Ingle, lunged toward Johnson. Ingle was arrested and removed from the courtroom and charged with misdemeanor battery.
Since the tragic crash, legislation has been passed in the state of Indiana in July of this year to increase the mandatory penalty for any driver who passes a stopped school bus.
