Tour Bus Driver To Be Charged In Crash

Massachusetts State Police plan to charge the driver of a tour bus that crashed into an overpass on Soldiers Field Road in February, injuring 35 high school students and their chaperones.

Samuel J. Jackson, 67, faces a criminal charge of operating negligently to endanger, according to a police statement.

The Philadelphia native will also be charged with two civil offenses: operating a bus on a Department of Conservation and Recreation roadway and failing to obey signs that prohibit buses from Soldiers Field Road.

Investigators said Jackson made no effort to slow the bus as it approached the Western Avenue bridge on Feb. 2.

Most of the injuries were minor but four people had to be hospitalized, including one boy who suffered life-threatening injuries.

The group was heading back to Philadelphia after a day trip to Harvard University when the crash occurred.

The Associated Press was unable to reach Jackson for comment. He was summoned to Boston Municipal Court, where the Suffolk District Attorney's office will prosecute the case.

With reporting by The Associated Press and the WBUR Newsroom