Here's some of the stories that I collected on this every emotional issue!
School official admits bus driver's error
Last updated Jul 7 2005 08:59 AM ADT
CBC News
The transportation director for District 11 admitted Wednesday that a school bus driver stopped on the wrong side of the road the day a five-year-old boy was killed last year in Cap Bimet.
Claude Maillet told an inquest in Moncton that the man knew he was supposed to pick up Rémi and Justin Cormier directly in front of their home, but for a reason yet to be explained he stopped on the other side of the street.
Rémi Cormier
Nine-year-old Justin walked across the road and got safely on board, but his brother, Rémi, was run over just as he was rounding the front of the bus, which had started to move.
Rémi's mother, Nadine Cormier, watched the tragedy unfold from the window of her home.
She said she'd always known the driver had stopped in the wrong place, but said it was a relief to have someone finally admit it.
"He should have gone down Cap Bimet Road and picked up my kids in front of our home as it was done since the beginning of the year," she said. "It's why my child is not with me today."
FROM JULY 6, 2005: Family says driver should have seen child
School officials say there have been improvements in bus safety and driver training since Rémi Cormier was killed, but there was always room for improvement.
Nadine Cormier
The driver, France Cormier, will take the stand on Thursday.
In addition to explaining why he stopped on the wrong side of the street, he'll have to answer for his failure to check his rear-view mirrors before putting the bus in gear.
Earlier in the week, the members of the jury and the Cormier family were given a tour of a school bus, identical to the one that ran over Remi.
Officials demonstrated that the driver would have had a clear view of the small boy, if only he'd checked the mirrors before starting to drive off.
Other children on the bus yelled at him to stop, but it was too late.
Al Breau, a friend of Rémi's parents, says the driver's testimony will be tough for everyone to endure.
"There'll be some high emotions and hurt and scars opened up again, but that's the purpose of this," he said.
Officials say France Cormier had driven buses for District 11 for about two years on a part-time basis. He had a clean record and his training was up to date.
He has never been charged in connection with the fatal accident on April 6, 2004.
The driver's testimony is expected to wrap up by noon Thursday. Then it will be up to the jurors to come up with safety recommendations.
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Times & Transcript | Courts/Crime
As published on page A3 on July 7, 2005
Bus driver ignored instructions, inquest told
Driver stopped on wrong side of road when Rémi Cormier died
RHONDA WHITTAKER
Times & Transcript Staff
The man driving the school bus that struck and killed a Grand-Barachois kindergarten student last April did not follow school district instructions on where to stop, the jury in a coroner's inquest heard yesterday.
Claude Maillet, transportation co-ordinator for School District 11, testified yesterday that spare driver France Cormier received a list of times and 911 addresses that served as designated bus stops for his new route. That list included two stops on the west side of Cap-Bimet Road.
That's the same side of the road where Rémi Cormier, five, and his brother Justin Cormier, then nine, lived. Each school day, the brothers would wait for the bus at the end of their driveway and board from that spot.
On April 6, 2004 the second day that France Cormier performed his duties on that particular route - he stopped the bus on the east side of Cap-Bimet Road, across the street from Rémi and Justin Cormier's house. (The driver isn't related to the boys.)
Justin traversed the street and boarded first, but as Rémi was crossing in front of the bus, it began to move and ran him over.
"If I decided to stop on the other side of the road, I'm making a conscious decision not to follow my route," Luc Labonte, legal counsel to the coroner, said to Maillet.
"Yes," Maillet answered.
In the audience, Rémi's mother Nadine Cormier wept silently, and his step-grandfather, Al Breau, put his head in his hands.
Later, Nadine Cormier told reporters how troubled she was by the information.
"It's why my child is not with me today," she said, her voice breaking.
Back at the inquiry, Maillet said he called France Cormier in April of last year to assign him the new route. He said the spare driver, who had driven buses for the district for about two years, had a clean driver's abstract, and his mandatory training and annual refresher courses were all up to date.
Maillet said he asked France Cormier if he could accompany the regular driver to learn the route.
"And he did indeed go," Maillet said.
Maillet also told the jury that in April 2002, no bus drivers in the school district were given the quantity or names of students they would be picking up or dropping off.
He said the school district, which represents French-speaking schools from Miramichi to Shemogue, in still in the process of creating a database of information for bus drivers that includes the names of all the children he or she will be transporting.
The process began two to three years ago, the jury heard. Maillet said it's taken time to launch it, because student information was sometimes entered in the school software in a way that wasn't compatible with the district's bus route software. School secretaries have since been trained on data entry, and the problem's been fixed, he said.
Rémi's kindergarten teacher at Père Edgar-T. LeBlanc school, Anita LeBlanc, gave the jury the "Dinobus" safety presentation that all kindergarten children must see in their first few days of school. LeBlanc said it was clear to her that Rémi understood the lesson.
"Rémi would remind me of the rules in the classroom," she said with a wan smile. "Not just for the school bus, but all the rules."
Nadine Cormier testified on Monday that she and Rémi also went over a Dinobus safety pamphlet together at home. The handout was provided to parents prior to enrolment.
Earlier yesterday, clinical biochemist Dr. Joanne Cadeau said that no drugs were present in Rémi's body on the day of the accident - not even the small quantity of Benadryl that his mother administered to ease his eczema symptoms that morning.
Today is the last scheduled day of the hearing. Both of Rémi Cormier's school bus drivers - his regular driver, as well as spare France Cormier - are expected to take the stand this morning. France Cormier's driver examiner is also slated to testify.
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NB Telegraph-Journal | Provincial News
As published on page A3 on July 7, 2005
Parents await testimony today of bus driver
District 11 official says driver was new to route, but had proper training
Maillet
BY ANDREW PHILIPS
Telegraph-Journal
Many questions that have undoubtedly haunted the parents of a five-year-old, Shediac-area boy struck and killed by his school bus last year could be answered today.
Bus driver France Cormier is scheduled to testify at a coroner's inquest into Remi Cormier's death and will likely be asked to explain why he opted not to stop in front of the young boy's Cap-Bimet home and whether he adequately checked his mirrors.
During testimony at the inquest in Moncton Wednesday, District 11 transportation supervisor Claude Maillet said Mr. Cormier (no relation to Remi) was given a bus route, times and stops along the route, which included the home of Remi and his older brother Justin, when he took over the Grand-Barachois-bound route just days earlier.
"They (the two brothers) would normally take it from their driveway, but in this case, he stopped on the opposite side," said Mr. Maillet, who is responsible for hiring drivers and determining bus-stop locations throughout the eastern New Brunswick school district.
But besides finding out why Mr. Cormier didn't follow the route, family spokesman Al Breau said the family also hopes to learn whether the bus's radio was on and if it had any effect on the driver's hearing that day.
"The kids were yelling, 'whoa,' and he kept on going," Mr. Breau said. "Was the radio too loud?"
Remi was on his way to kindergarten when the incident occurred. An RCMP investigation ruled out any criminal charges against the driver.
Mr. Maillet said that while Mr. Cormier was relatively new to the route, he had all of the proper training and background checks and had taken a ridealong with the route's previous driver.
"We try, as much as possible, to make sure the driver is familiar with the route," Mr. Maillet said.
As well, he said the district is now working on a database to give drivers information on individual students and where each one gets on the bus.
"We've been working on the list for about two to three years. This is a slow process," he said, acknowledging there are challenges with implementing the system since students from of divorced parents may split their week between two different homes.
District 11 has 73 school buses with 5,600 students taking the bus to school, employing 73 full-time drivers along with 25 spares and covering 1.8 million kilometres of road over a 10-month period.
Mr. Maillet said the district tries to locate stops a maximum of 400 metres apart, which are often located closer to accommodate younger students. As well, he said stops are placed on the right side of the road wherever possible so students don't have to cross the street to get on the bus.
He added: "We try to advise the bus driver to try to pick up the students without having them cross."
Several witnesses Wednesday also outlined bus safety measures, including specialized training both full- and part-time drivers require every two years, as well as annual refresher courses and a fun school program promoting bus safety that all students must take.
Ron Arsenault, a transportation analyst with the province's Education Department, said potential school-bus drivers must complete a week-long training and first-aid course, acquire the proper licensing, successfully pass a criminal background check and possess a clean driver's licence abstract.
"Their licences expires at two-year intervals so they have to get a licence again every second year," Mr. Arsenault said. "They also need to have a medical exam every two years."
The five-member jury and presiding coroner Gloria Merrithew also viewed a presentation by Remi Cormier's former kindergarten teacher Anita LeBlanc on the Dinobus bus safety program.
"It holds their attention up until the end," said Ms. LeBlanc, noting there could be ways to make the program more interactive in the future by adding a colouring or other craft or game component.
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