McALLEN, Texas-
The judge in the trial of a bus company president accused of safety violations indicated Monday that he will greatly restrict the evidence prosecutors present about the catalyst for the safety investigation: a fiery bus wreck that killed 23 nursing home residents fleeing Hurricane Rita.
“I do not plan to bring up the issue of the accident,” U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa said. “I don’t know if you can bootstrap that into this case.”
A jury was selected Monday in the trial of James H. Maples, president and director of Global Limo Inc., who along with his company is accused of conspiring to falsify driver time records and failing to inspect buses to ensure their safety.
Thirty-seven nursing home residents were on the bus evacuating Houston ahead of the Rita when the vehicle caught fire Sept. 23, 2005, on a freeway near Dallas. Many were disabled and unable to escape.
The accident is believed to have been caused by an overheated bearing in the rear wheel well, probably the result of poor maintenance. The tire ignited and the fire engulfed the bus, then probably caused oxygen canisters to explode, investigators said.
Hinojosa said prosecutors would not be allowed to use evidence about the crash itself without approaching the bench and proving it was relevant to the case at hand.
About a dozen prospective jurors said they had seen, heard or read media reports of Global’s involvement in the wreck. Several were excluded for having been bus drivers or working in the industry.
“The charges aren’t related to the bus accident,” defense attorney Charles Banker said outside the courtroom.
Prosecutors have said the trial will focus on the company’s management leading up to the accident. The witness list includes bus drivers and several safety inspectors, but no survivors, rescue workers or others involved in the accident.
The most serious of the charges in the three-count indictment against Maples is the conspiracy charge, which carries up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If the company is convicted on that charge, it could be fined $500,000.
The conspiracy charge alleges that drivers operated in pairs, with one driving and the other resting in the passenger seat. There was no sleeper berth for the resting driver as required by law and indicated in driver logs.
The other charges allege that Maples and his company knowingly and willingly failed to inspect and maintain the buses.
Maples, a former NFL player, appeared in good spirits, even making a mock golf swing after the pretrial motions were argued. The 67-year-old has spent the last year free on $75,000 bond.
Global Limo was shut down two weeks after the accident. In May, victims reached an $11 million settlement with Global and with BusBank, the travel broker that hired the bus.
Since the wreck, the U.S. Department of Transportation has issued new guidelines for carrying medical oxygen, recommending that tanks be secured in an upright position and limited to one canister per patient in the passenger compartment.
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