GERMAN TWP., Clark County — The roadside memorial continues to grow for Aiden Clark, the 11-year-old who died this week when the Northwestern Local School District bus he was in crashed on its way to school after colliding with a minivan.
>>PHOTOS: Roadside memorial grows for victim in Clark County school bus
Thursday, the Clark County community of German Twp. continued through its stages of grief about the boy and the 26 other children on the bus who were injured in the crash. One of them suffered serious, life-threatening injuries and was taken to Children’s Hospital in Dayton. The bus driver, 68-year-old Alfred Collier, suffered minor injuries but was not taken to a hospital.
“You go through stages of shock and overwhelming sadness and then the anger comes,” Cari Stockdale told News Center 7′s Mike Campbell.
She brought her two teenage sons to the memorial Thursday. They are high school sophomores who once rode the same bus route involved in the crash on state Route 41 (Troy Road), near Lawrenceville Road, in the township.
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The loss Aiden Clark’s family is feeling hits home with her, Stockdale said.
“I just feel so sorry for them. [They] lost their child. It’s devastating and I just pray for them and hope they can get through this the best they can,” the Clark County resident said.
Thursday, a Clark County judge told 35-year-old Hermanio Joseph, who was driving the minivan that struck the school bus, he could face 6 to 12 months in jail and/or a $5,000 fine if he is convicted as charged on one count of aggravated vehicular homicide. The judge set bond at $100,000.
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It’s the only charge filed so far as the Ohio State Highway Patrol continues its investigation. Troopers, according to the preliminary investigation, believe Joseph drove left of center and hit the bus, which sent it off the road and into a ditch, where it overturned.
Troopers also have said Joseph had an invalid Mexico driver’s license and no valid U.S. or Ohio driver’s license. Those facts are causing upset with some.
“People that don’t understand [having a] license to drive on our roadways, should not be around families, our children, our community, and honestly, quite frankly, it pisses me off,” said Skylar Bowen of Clark County.
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The tight-knit school community, as it continues through the stages of grief, is all torn up for an extended family that has lost the child they call the light of their lives.
“I hope some kind of justice comes for this family,” Stockdale said.
Meantime, the roadside memorial is growing by the hour, seemingly, and the word is there are discussions about making some type of permanent memorial on the site as well.
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