An RTD bus driver who hit and killed a Lakewood woman as she crossed a downtown street could be charged with misdemeanor careless driving resulting in death, Denver police said Friday.
Detectives submitted their findings to the district attorney’s office, which will decide whether to charge driver James W. Bauman, 60, for the Thursday incident that killed 46-year-old Breona M. Taylor, police spokesman Sonny Jackson said.
“She was using the crosswalk and you have to yield the right of way to the pedestrian,” Jackson said. “It’s an unfortunate situation, that generally results in (careless) driving charges.”
RTD officials said they had no formal notification from the DA’s office that the driver has been charged and they have yet to complete their own investigation of the incident.
Both must occur before RTD would take any action regarding Bauman’s service with the agency, spokesman Scott Reed said.
For now, the driver remains on paid administrative leave, Reed said.
Bauman has been with RTD for 11 years and has a “clean” driving record, Reed added.
The incident occurred about 4 p.m. Thursday, when Bauman’s bus struck Taylor, as the bus headed east from the Auraria campus onto Larimer Street.
Taylor had the walk signal and apparently stepped in front of the bus, Reed said.
Her relatives and Bauman could not be reached for comment.
There was another fatal accident involving an RTD bus on Thursday. A woman driving a car on a West Hampden Avenue frontage road just east of South Wadsworth Boulevard was killed when she tried to pass a bus that was making a left turn, according to the Colorado State Patrol. In that accident, the bus driver was found to be not at fault, Reed said.
Staff writer Manny Gonzales can be reached at 303-820-1537 or mgonzales@denverpost.com.
