A Licking County judge found Zanesville semi-truck driver Jacob McDonald not guilty of driving recklessly and causing the deadly 2023 bus crash on I-70 that killed six people and injured over a dozen others.
Judge David Branstool Judge David Branstool found McDonald, 61, guilty on six counts of misdemeanor vehicular homicide and 11 counts of misdemeanor assault, but not guilty on nine counts of vehicular assault. McDonald was originally charged with felony aggravated vehicular homicide, which would carry more severe penalties.
Branstool did not sentence McDonald Friday.
McDonald opted not to take a jury trial, meaning Branstool ruled on the charges from the bench.
The six people who died that day included John Mosley, 18, Jeffery Worrell, 18, Katelyn Owens, 15, Dave Kennat, 56, Kristy Gaynor, 39, and Shannon Wigfield, 46. Mosley, Worrell and Owens were members of the Tuscarawas Valley Local Schools High School marching band. Kennat and Gaynor were parent chaperones and Wigfield was an English teacher.
Branstool explained his verdict, saying he found McDonald criminally responsible for the collision, but said that the prosecution failed to establish beyond a reasonable doubt the element of recklessness, which would have elevated the charges to a felony.
"At various points in our life, we're all just a few feet or a few seconds away from a disaster. And that's what happened here. The facts of the case are largely undisputed," Branstool said.
The Nov. 14 chain reaction crash involved five vehicles near the Smoke Road underpass about 26 miles east of Columbus. The vehicles were approaching a construction zone that was causing a slowdown in traffic.
Crash reports compiled by the Ohio State Highway Patrol show McDonald's semi truck at the rear of the chain crashed into a Nissan Murano, killing the three adults. The truck, carrying multiple tons of car batteries, then hit the back of the Pioneer Trails charter bus carrying 54 people, igniting a fire that engulfed all three vehicles.
The charter bus then veered to the right, hitting a Toyota Highlander and injuring its driver. The bus then hit the back of another semi truck before coming to a halt.
During McDonald's trial, over a dozen witnesses testified for the prosecution, including the surviving drivers of each of the vehicles involved in the crash and other vehicles that were nearby and either captured the crash on dash cam videos or witnessed it themselves.
Defense Attorney Chris Brigdon argued during the trial that they weren't arguing the death and injuries that the crash caused, but were primarily disputing the element of "recklessness" that elevated the charges to a felony. Branstool's ruling aligned with Brigdon's argument.
Brigdon said to reporters he didn't talk to his client, McDonald after the verdict. McDonald was wearing prison clothes and was handcuffed and led out of the courtroom after Branstool finished the court session.
Brigdon said he understands the pain of the victims' families, but he doesn't think there are any winners in the trial.
"I can't even fathom that sort of loss. We tried this case within the confines of the law. You know, everybody's entitled to the best possible defense," Brigdon said 'We did our job. The best that I possibly could."
Licking County Assistant Prosecutor Clifford Murphy said he was disappointed by the verdict and doesn't feel justice was served. He said it will be hard for the families of the people who died to move forward.
"I don't think that when you bury six people and you have a number of other people who have suffered serious life-changing injuries, there's going to be closure," Murphy said. "I don't think that any verdict in this court would bring closure."
During the trial, Murphy argued McDonald was distracted and driving recklessly by speeding, leading up to the crash. Murphy presented evidence showing McDonald driving over the 70 mph speed limit less than one minute before the crash and data from McDonald's phone that showed a spike in data usage that he argued was consistent with downloading or streaming a video.
Defense attorney Chris Brigdon called two witnesses, including a crash reconstruction expert and a digital analyst. The two primarily presented evidence to try and disprove that McDonald was distracted by his cell phone and driving recklessly. Murphy attempted to discredit both witnesses.
Branstool specifically said he did not believe the evidence from McDonald's cell phone proved he was distracted.
Murphy said he respects Branstool's verdict, but still believes McDonald was driving recklessly.
"If you close your eyes for seven second, and you're carrying 50,000 pounds of weight down a road moving 105 feet a second and you don't see anything in front of you.... yeah, you're probably reckless," Murphy said.
Tusky Valley's band director, students on the bus and first responders also testified.
The families of victims, other Tusky Valley students and others sat through the three days of proceedings. Many wore shirts or pins with symbols from Tusky Valley schools or the faces of the six victims.
Many of the family members and those supporting the crash victims left the courthouse without speaking to the media. Many cried and left the courtroom after Branstool read his verdict.
Danielle Goedel spoke to reporters after the trial. Her daughter Brynn Goedel was injured in the crash and testified against McDonald for the prosecution during the trial.
Goedel said she doesn't think justice was served.
"Nobody wakes up in the morning wanting to go kill six people and injure and hurt the number 50 plus. But on the other hand... He did," Goedel said.
Goedel said she wants McDonald to be honest about what he did that day and to apologize for his actions.
Goedel said they have to move forward, but closure isn't something she thinks is happening now.
"We're a school district. We have band kids. We're families. We work. We've taken off so much time from work. We have to, and there's no choice," Goedel said.
Branstool said he expects to sentence McDonald at a later date.
Brigdon said he expects McDonald may get 18 months in prison with time served, which would amount to 7 months in prison and monetary fines. McDonald faced a maximum of 31 years in prison if convicted of all the felony counts.
