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School bus driver arraigned for DWI
A court official said Spear probably will be arraigned again in district court next week and have a lawyer appointed by either Judge George Gilles or Judge Dean Rucker.
by Bob Campbell
Midland Reporter-Telegram
An 11-year veteran Midland Independent School District bus driver was arraigned Wednesday on three state jail felony driving while intoxicated with a child passenger charges related to her Tuesday arrest at the scene of a double rear-end collision involving her school bus.
Saying she had been taking nine prescription drugs, some of them very strong, according to experts, Susan Lee Spear heard Precinct 4 Justice of the Peace George Zimmerman set a $4,000 bond on each allegation and record her request for a court-appointed attorney.
The 50-year-old defendant decried her predicament, the judge said. "She was very unhappy with being charged three times, but I said, 'That's the way it is,'" said Zimmerman after the 1 p.m. proceeding.
"I said, 'You had three children.' She's going to have to wear an ankle monitor and have a deep lung breath analysis mechanism to start her car. If she tries to get help before she goes to court, she could help herself.
"You've got to want to help yourself to get that devil off your back."
Zimmerman said he expects Spear to gain her release through county pre-trial bonding services on the total $12,000 bond, adding that a district judge will name an attorney for her if her claim of indigence is verified.
A court official said Spear probably will be arraigned again in district court next week and have a lawyer appointed by either Judge George Gilles or Judge Dean Rucker.
Spear was taken into custody at the scene of a 7:43 a.m. Tuesday collision between her bus and a 2006 Volkswagen Jetta driven by Jodi Swanner, who told officers the bright yellow behemoth had rear-ended her twice -- the second time when she tried to get out but "was shoved down the road."
Having been hit while taking her daughter to school, Swanner called 9-1-1 and asked Spear get a sobriety test. MPD Officers Brent Sheets and Craig Matthews said in their affidavit that she "had droopy eyelids and slow, slurred speech" and failed a field sobriety test.
Matthews, a drug recognition expert, said Spear "did poorly on the walk and turn, failed to maintain balance, missed heel to toe on many steps, swayed noticeably, stepped off line and took the wrong number of steps.
"She refused to do the one leg stand," the officer wrote.
Along with three 4-year-olds on the way to West Early Childhood Education Center at 2101 W. Missouri Ave., a teacher's aide and bus monitor were on the bus when the accident happened. Another driver was dispatched to complete the route. No one was hurt.
City spokeswoman Tina Jauz said a breath test indicated Spear had not drunk any alcohol.
District Attorney Teresa Clingman promised quick action, and a conviction could bring a maximum term of six years in prison. Spear is eligible for probation because she has not been convicted of a felony, according to records.
"These kinds of cases, especially where multiple children are involved, are always of utmost concern because of the potential for mass casualties or harm," Clingman said. "We will take it to a grand jury as quickly as the case is sent to us and can be reviewed."
MISD Communications Director Woodrow Bailey said Spear is on administrative leave pending the outcome. Contrary to traffic on mywesttexas.com's open forum and phone calls to the Reporter-Telegram, he knew of no health issues that would have hampered or impaired Spear from doing her job.
"She didn't have any prior record -- no incidents of any sort," said Bailey, adding that her personnel and medical records are confidential. He said a decision on Spear's employment should be made late this week or early next week.
Julio Castillo, a pharmacist at Graham's Pharmacy, said after going through the drugs Spear claimed to be taking, "From the looks of it, it looks like she's got nerve damage or nerve pain from a bad back."
Castillo went through the drugs and their effects:
-Neurontin is a "seizure-type medication," he said, but physicians use it to help with nerve pain.
-Lortab is used mainly for pain and is the brand name of hydrocodone, a Federal Schedule 2 Controlled Substance.
-Soma is used as a muscle relaxer for muscle spasms.
Lortab or hydrocodone has a numbing effect and can make people dizzy or go to sleep. Soma does the same and Castillo said the muscle relaxer can also cause blurred vision and drowsiness.
"Taking them together can increase those effects even more," he said.
-Verampamil is a blood pressure medication. Depending on when it's taken, it can affect vision and drop blood pressure. Sometimes the blood pressure can drop too much and the person passes out, but that usually only happens if you stand up too quickly after sitting or laying down, Castillo said.
Verampamil also increases drowsiness and decreases reaction time.
-Dalmane is used for sleep.
-Amitrptyline and Neurontin are nerve pain drugs. "Those are really bad," Castillo said. "The way they work is by slowing nerve conduction. By themselves they can slow reaction time" and taking them with Lortab or Soma can heighten the effect.
Albuterol is an inhaler for breathing problems and Singular a tablet for allergies, but they don't usually make you drowsy, Castillo said.
-Prevacid is an antacid like Prilosec that could be used to ameliorate the effects of Lortab and Soma, which he said could "tear your stomach up."
Midland County Sheriff Gary Painter said if drugs are lawfully prescribed and "our doctor determines she needs that medication, then by all means we're not going to deny her medical care."
Anytime there is a question about whether an employee is on alcohol or drugs, MISD Director of Transportation Services Willie Tarleton can request a drug test. Employees in his department also undergo pre-employment drug screening and random testing.
In this case, both the district and police department had Spear tested, Bailey said.
MISD follows U.S. Department of Transportation guidelines and if someone refuses a drug test, he or she can be terminated immediately, he said.
Saying she had been taking nine prescription drugs, some of them very strong, according to experts, Susan Lee Spear heard Precinct 4 Justice of the Peace George Zimmerman set a $4,000 bond on each allegation and record her request for a court-appointed attorney.
The 50-year-old defendant decried her predicament, the judge said. "She was very unhappy with being charged three times, but I said, 'That's the way it is,'" said Zimmerman after the 1 p.m. proceeding.
"I said, 'You had three children.' She's going to have to wear an ankle monitor and have a deep lung breath analysis mechanism to start her car. If she tries to get help before she goes to court, she could help herself.
"You've got to want to help yourself to get that devil off your back."
Zimmerman said he expects Spear to gain her release through county pre-trial bonding services on the total $12,000 bond, adding that a district judge will name an attorney for her if her claim of indigence is verified.
A court official said Spear probably will be arraigned again in district court next week and have a lawyer appointed by either Judge George Gilles or Judge Dean Rucker.
Spear was taken into custody at the scene of a 7:43 a.m. Tuesday collision between her bus and a 2006 Volkswagen Jetta driven by Jodi Swanner, who told officers the bright yellow behemoth had rear-ended her twice -- the second time when she tried to get out but "was shoved down the road."
Having been hit while taking her daughter to school, Swanner called 9-1-1 and asked Spear get a sobriety test. MPD Officers Brent Sheets and Craig Matthews said in their affidavit that she "had droopy eyelids and slow, slurred speech" and failed a field sobriety test.
Matthews, a drug recognition expert, said Spear "did poorly on the walk and turn, failed to maintain balance, missed heel to toe on many steps, swayed noticeably, stepped off line and took the wrong number of steps.
"She refused to do the one leg stand," the officer wrote.
Along with three 4-year-olds on the way to West Early Childhood Education Center at 2101 W. Missouri Ave., a teacher's aide and bus monitor were on the bus when the accident happened. Another driver was dispatched to complete the route. No one was hurt.
City spokeswoman Tina Jauz said a breath test indicated Spear had not drunk any alcohol.
District Attorney Teresa Clingman promised quick action, and a conviction could bring a maximum term of six years in prison. Spear is eligible for probation because she has not been convicted of a felony, according to records.
"These kinds of cases, especially where multiple children are involved, are always of utmost concern because of the potential for mass casualties or harm," Clingman said. "We will take it to a grand jury as quickly as the case is sent to us and can be reviewed."
MISD Communications Director Woodrow Bailey said Spear is on administrative leave pending the outcome. Contrary to traffic on mywesttexas.com's open forum and phone calls to the Reporter-Telegram, he knew of no health issues that would have hampered or impaired Spear from doing her job.
"She didn't have any prior record -- no incidents of any sort," said Bailey, adding that her personnel and medical records are confidential. He said a decision on Spear's employment should be made late this week or early next week.
Julio Castillo, a pharmacist at Graham's Pharmacy, said after going through the drugs Spear claimed to be taking, "From the looks of it, it looks like she's got nerve damage or nerve pain from a bad back."
Castillo went through the drugs and their effects:
-Neurontin is a "seizure-type medication," he said, but physicians use it to help with nerve pain.
-Lortab is used mainly for pain and is the brand name of hydrocodone, a Federal Schedule 2 Controlled Substance.
-Soma is used as a muscle relaxer for muscle spasms.
Lortab or hydrocodone has a numbing effect and can make people dizzy or go to sleep. Soma does the same and Castillo said the muscle relaxer can also cause blurred vision and drowsiness.
"Taking them together can increase those effects even more," he said.
-Verampamil is a blood pressure medication. Depending on when it's taken, it can affect vision and drop blood pressure. Sometimes the blood pressure can drop too much and the person passes out, but that usually only happens if you stand up too quickly after sitting or laying down, Castillo said.
Verampamil also increases drowsiness and decreases reaction time.
-Dalmane is used for sleep.
-Amitrptyline and Neurontin are nerve pain drugs. "Those are really bad," Castillo said. "The way they work is by slowing nerve conduction. By themselves they can slow reaction time" and taking them with Lortab or Soma can heighten the effect.
Albuterol is an inhaler for breathing problems and Singular a tablet for allergies, but they don't usually make you drowsy, Castillo said.
-Prevacid is an antacid like Prilosec that could be used to ameliorate the effects of Lortab and Soma, which he said could "tear your stomach up."
Midland County Sheriff Gary Painter said if drugs are lawfully prescribed and "our doctor determines she needs that medication, then by all means we're not going to deny her medical care."
Anytime there is a question about whether an employee is on alcohol or drugs, MISD Director of Transportation Services Willie Tarleton can request a drug test. Employees in his department also undergo pre-employment drug screening and random testing.
In this case, both the district and police department had Spear tested, Bailey said.
MISD follows U.S. Department of Transportation guidelines and if someone refuses a drug test, he or she can be terminated immediately, he said.
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