Driver gets 90 days in jail in bus-train collision that killed 3

<p>Relatives of three children killed in a 2000 school bus-train collision cried in court as the Georgia driver was sentenced Monday to 90 days in jail as part of a plea agreement.</p><p>Rhonda Cloer, 39, was sentenced after pleading guilty to three counts of criminal negligent homicide and four counts of reckless aggravated assault.</p><p>Cloer sobbed as she stood before Polk County Judge Steven Bebb, who told her that all human beings make mistakes.</p><p>I am so sorry, Cloer said.</p><p>Sonya Miller, whose 6-year-old daughter Kayla Silvers of Tennga, Ga., died in the accident, testified against a short jail term before the sentence was handed down.</p><p>She just took her away from me and what am I getting _ 90 days? Miller said.</p><p>Cloers bus collided with the train in Tennessee just across the state line from Tennga after she had driven into Polk County to turn her bus around in a church parking lot. A video camera on the bus showed Cloer driving across the tracks without stopping.</p><p>The wreck also injured four children, including Cloers daughter.</p><p>A National Transportation Safety Board investigation concluded that the probable cause of the accident was Cloers failure to follow proper procedures and stop before crossing the tracks. The report said she couldnt hear the trains horn because the bus radio was on and she didnt open the door.</p><p>After Cloer is released from jail, she will be on probation for four years.</p>

http://accesswdun.com/article/2004/1/178126