KCTV 5$5M settlement in death of St. Joe student hit by bus

$5M settlement in death of St. Joe student hit by bus

By Chris Oberholtz, Multimedia Producer - email
The $5 million settlement that First Student, Incorporated of Cincinnati agreed to pay the St. Joseph mother of Mason Adams, who killed when he was hit by a bus in Nov. 2010. The $5 million settlement that First Student, Incorporated of Cincinnati agreed to pay the St. Joseph mother of Mason Adams, who killed when he was hit by a bus in Nov. 2010.
ST. JOSEPH, MO (KCTV) -

The case against a school bus company accused in the death of a 16-year-old St. Joseph boy is settled.

The $5 million settlement that First Student, Inc., of Cincinnati agreed to pay the St. Joseph mother of Mason Adams, who was killed when he was hit by a bus in Nov. 2010.

Video from the morning of the accident, shows the bus with foggy and reportedly icy windows. The bus driver, Tracey Jones, was said to be running late not giving enough time to defrost and briefly tried to scrape the window.

Also Jones gets out to do her pre-trip inspection, an action that normally takes 8 to 10 minutes, down to 30 seconds.

After she gets back on to the bus, she turns on the windshield wipers to try to clear them off, to no avail.

A few more moments of trying that, she drives off, on her route, with her vision possibly impaired by the fog, and reportedly ice.

The bus ultimately struck Adams in a crosswalk. His mother, Bridget Blasi, said the company finally took responsibility for her son's death.

The $5 million settlement avoids what could have been a costly trial for the bus company, and the driver.

Blasi said with the money, she will build a ballpark in his name, since he loved baseball, and will also further fund a scholarship, also in his name.

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