The Duluth Transit Authority bus driver involved in a fatal pedestrian crash at Miller Hill Mall on Sept. 10 has been charged with criminal vehicular homicide.
Crystal Veronica Ball, 36, faces a maximum 10 years in prison “as a result of operating a motor vehicle in a grossly negligent manner" resulting in the death of David John Weston, 64, of Duluth, the criminal complaint said.
According to the complaint filed in District Court in Duluth late last month, Weston had caught the eye of the driver, Ball, and they even waved to one another as he crossed the path of the bus as it was stopped along a sidewalk.
“(S)he assumed he had gotten to the sidewalk,” the complaint said. “(Ball) said she then saw the victim as he impacted with her bus.”
Ball noted to investigators that she was working an overtime shift. She also said she was familiar with the type of bus she was driving and the mall route. She told authorities she drove a bus with a “high-mounted mirror,” which made it harder for her to see around.
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Authorities interviewed DTA officials, who reported drivers are trained in methods to see around blind spots in order to ensure they’re clear to operate. Video from the incident showed Ball did not engage in techniques to clear her blind spots.
In the days following his death, the News Tribune reported Weston was a beloved figure at Choice, Unlimited , a community-based private nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting adults with disabilities. Weston received services through Choice, and worked there for a while as a custodian.
The complaint details how investigators used multiple videos captured from cameras on and inside the bus to recreate the incident. The complaint noted how Ball described Weston as “shuffling” through a crosswalk toward a sidewalk in front of the bus.
After acknowledging Weston with a wave, Ball became fixed looking to her left. Late in the 15 seconds Weston was in the crosswalk, Ball pulled away from the curb.
“Based on (video) review it is clear (Ball) was not looking in the direction the bus was moving, but rather was distracted and waving/gesturing to other buses to her left at the time she struck the victim,” the complaint said.
The complaint noted 3 seconds and a “significant distance” traveled between Ball pulling away and striking Weston, “creating a situation where a reasonable driver could have avoided striking the victim.”
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Duluth police responded to the incident at 9:54 a.m. Sept. 10. Weston was declared dead within the hour. An autopsy determined the victim died as a result of "multiple blunt force injuries due to the pedestrian-bus incident."
The incident was the second involving a DTA bus striking pedestrians in 2021 . The first incident found the driver cited for failure to yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk.
The DTA confirmed through spokesman David Clark on Friday that Ball "has separated from the organization."
Ball was charged in a summons, and will make her first court appearance Dec. 29 in Duluth.
