If your child was injured or killed in a school bus accident, our lawyers can help your family get a money settlement and justice. You may have a lawsuit against the school district and a bus company. In many districts, transportation is contracted out to a company.
Contact a bus accident lawyer at our law firm to find out if you have the right to sue for compensation. Our law firm has won hundreds of millions of dollars for accident victims and families nationwide.
Attorneys Represent Family of Child Run Over by a School Bus
Attorneys at Pritzker Hageman obtained a wrongful death settlement for a family whose child died in a school bus accident. The bus stopped in front of the boy’s driveway after school. When the boy exited, the driver was distracted. As the boy walked in front of the bus, the driver pulled forward and ran over the boy.
Initially, the school district denied fault, but the Pritzker Hageman legal team proved the driver had been careless and that it had cost a little boy his life. The family found a measure of peace knowing the truth had been uncovered. The parents used part of the money obtained in a settlement for a scholarship to honor the memory of their son.
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Child Injured in a School Bus Accident
If your child has been injured, your child and you may have a claim against the school bus company, school district, and others for the following:
- Hospital and other medical bills
- The estimated amount of lost income of the child due to the injuries sustained in the accident
- Pain and emotional suffering suffering
- Disfigurement
- Permanent disability
- Compensation for money lost because you had to take time off of work.
For example, in one bus accident case handled by our attorneys, we represented a child who suffered serious injuries that led to multiple complications including kidney failure. These injuries resulted in weeks of hospitalization, followed by a lengthy period of daily kidney dialysis treatments. Both the parents lost significant income as they were required to take time off from work to care for their child. The law allows parents to recoup these lost wages because a family should not have to suffer financial harm when the carelessness or intentional wrongdoing of a company injures a child.
Experienced lawyers also will seek compensation for expected future medical expenses, pain and suffering, lost wages, etc. This needs to be calculated carefully by your legal team which will include experienced attorneys who might also consult with doctors, accountants, and others. Our law firm works with some of the best medical and financial experts to make sure our clients get the compensation they deserve.
Child Killed by a School Bus
Losing a child is the most devastating thing a parent can experience. We know that a lawsuit for the death of a child is painful for the family. However, a wrongful death lawsuit is often the only way to make sure the truth is known, that some measure of justice can be obtained and that wrongdoers have the kind of consequences that may help prevent them from acting in the same negligent way again in the future.
The law provides families the right to sue a company for the wrongful death of a child because there needs to be a way for the family to obtain evidence and be compensated for the tragic loss. A settlement may include amounts for the following:
- Lost economic contributions
- Loss of care and companionship
- Funeral expenses
- Other damages.
The Law Requires School Bus Drivers to Be Extra Careful
School bus drivers must obey all traffic laws. Because these vehicles are “common carriers” under federal and state law, the driver and the owner are held to a higher degree of care. The driver must use the utmost caution when driving in order to ensure the safety of the passengers. The owner (a private company or school district), must keep the bus in exceptionally good working condition, hire qualified drivers, properly train drivers, fire drivers who may pose a danger to the passengers, and make sure the bus is a secure and safe vehicle in every way.
Most states put some restrictions on cell phone use while driving. The law in almost all states is that a school bus driver may not operate the vehicle while communicating over, or otherwise operating, a cellular phone for personal reasons when the vehicle is in motion. This restriction applies whether the style of the cell phone is handheld or hands-free. This also includes texting.
If a school bus involved in an accident was defective, you may also have the right to sue a manufacturer. We have a national reputation in the area of product liability.
School Bus Accident News
School Bus Accident Kills Woman in Benton County, Iowa
A fatal school bus accident in Benton County, Iowa, claimed the life of 37-year-old Crystal Offerman on Friday, October 17, 2025. According to the Iowa State Patrol, the crash happened on Highway 218 near 61st Street, just south of Vinton. Offerman was driving southbound on Highway 218 when her vehicle was struck from behind by a Vinton-Shellsburg school bus. The force of the impact pushed her vehicle into the path of a northbound car. Offerman was transported by ambulance to University of Iowa Health Care in Iowa City, where she later died from her injuries.
There were six children on the bus, and none were injured. The tragic crash adds to a growing toll on Iowa roads. According to the Iowa Department of Transportation, 218 traffic fatalities have been reported so far this year. Over the past five years, Iowa has averaged 353 roadway deaths annually. Crashes like this underscore the devastating impact of school bus and passenger vehicle collisions, leaving families and communities grieving tragic losses.
12-Year-Old Girl Dies in Las Vegas School Bus Accident
Authorities say a Las Vegas school bus driver has been found at fault in a school bus accident that tragically claimed the life of 12-year-old Haylee Ryan. The crash happened near Bradley Road and West Tropical Parkway on the afternoon of October 6. According to investigators, the front side of the school bus struck the left handlebar of Haylee’s bike, causing her to collide with a parked truck in a designated bike lane.
An incident report found that the school bus driver did not provide enough space while passing. Haylee was taken to a nearby hospital with serious injuries but passed away the following day. Fifty-five students were on the bus at the time of the school bus crash. None were injured and were escorted off the bus by their parents.
Over the weekend, a candlelight vigil at Lief Middle School brought together friends, classmates, and community members to remember Haylee. Her mother, Meghan Ryan, shared that Haylee was one of four children, including an 8-year-old brother who is battling brain cancer. In the days following the tragedy, an online fundraiser was created to support the Ryan family as they navigate unimaginable loss and ongoing medical challenges.
At Pritzker Hageman, we understand how devastating it is to lose a child in a school bus accident that could have been prevented. Our Las Vegas personal injury attorneys have extensive experience handling school bus crash cases and helping families find answers, accountability, and a sense of justice during unimaginable loss.
School Bus Accident Claims Life of 4-Year-Old Boy in Sussex, WI
On Thursday, January 2, 2025, a tragic school bus accident claimed the life of a 4-year-old kindergartner in Sussex, Wisconsin. The incident occurred in the Silver Spring Intermediate School parking lot, where the young boy was waiting to board a shuttle bus to Willow Springs Learning Center.
The fatal crash happened just after 8:30 a.m. as students returned to school after the holiday break. The child was struck by a Dairyland-Hamilton school bus transporting other students within the school zone. This school bus accident has left the Sussex community in mourning and raised critical questions about school bus safety protocols.
A concerned parent, whose 5-year-old son witnessed the tragedy, shared their perspective with WISN-TV:
There’s a transfer that happens between the buses in the morning, which we hate by the way. The youngest one gets out every morning with a chaperone from the middle school. I don’t know what happened but during the transfer, my son said the kid that’s behind him got hit by the bus and it just missed him.
The Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department and the Hamilton School District are investigating the circumstances of the school bus accident. In response, the school district canceled Friday classes and has provided grief counseling services through its student services team and the Waukesha County Critical Incident Stress Management Team. A prayer vigil to honor the young boy will occur on January 3 at 7 p.m. at Christ Our Savior Lutheran Church in Sussex.
12 Students Injured After Car T-Bones School Bus Near Hibbing, Minnesota
A rollover crash involving a school bus resulted in multiple injuries near Hibbing, Minnesota on September 12, 2024. The accident happened at the intersection of Town Line Road and Highway 5 when a vehicle collided with a St. Louis County School District bus carrying at least 20 students from the Cherry School. The impact of the crash caused the bus to roll over, leaving multiple students injured in what authorities classified as a “mass casualty” event. Twelve students were transported to area hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries. The bus driver was also transported to the hospital with unknown injuries while the car’s driver was airlifted with serious injuries. The school bus crash is under investigation by the Minnesota State Patrol.
3 Children, 2 Adults Die After School Bus Crashes with Semi-Truck in Illinois
Three children and two adults died in a tragic crash between a school bus and a semi-truck in western Illinois on March 11, 2024. According to Illinois State Police, the fatal crash happened on U.S. Route 24 in Rushville, near Springfield. A bus from Schuyler-Industry Schools was traveling east when it crossed the center line into the westbound lanes “for an unknown reason” and into the path of a semi-truck carrying sand. Sadly, all three students on the bus died including three-year-old Andrew Miller, three-year-old Noah Driscoll, and five-year-old Maria Miller. The bus driver, 57-year-old Angela Spiker, and the semi-driver, 72-year-old David Coufal, also died in the crash. The cause of the accident is under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).
27-Year-Old Man Struck and Killed by Minneapolis School Bus
A school bus driver struck and killed 27-year-old Josue Gochez Perez in south Minneapolis on Monday, April 24, 2023. A spokesperson with Minneapolis Schools says the crash happened at about 6:45 AM near East 28th Street and Cedar Avenue. At the time of the crash, an 8-year-old student who was on the bus was safely transported to school.
Iowa School Bus Crash Sends 1 Child to Hospital in Ambulance
A school bus went off the road and crashed in a ditch in Boone, Iowa on Thursday, April 20, 2023. The Coone County Sheriff’s Office says the bus went off the road in the 1700 block of 205th Street shortly before 7:30 AM. The bus, which was operated by the United Community School District, was transporting 15 students ranging in age from 5 to 15. One child was taken to the hospital by ambulance. Ten other children sustained minor injuries and were transported to a local hospital by another school bus.
6-Year-Old Struck and Injured by School Bus Driver in Brooklyn Park, MN
A six-year-old boy was struck and injured after exiting the school bus in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota. The boy is a student at Prodeo Academy in Columbia Heights. He was dropped off at the Edinburgh Golf Course parking lot to walk home from school when the bus driver ran him over. The boy was taken to the hospital with injuries to his legs. The Brooklyn Park Police Department says the driver initially left the scene and claimed to be unaware of striking the child. Other children were onboard the bus at the time of the accident. An investigation is ongoing.
School Bus Crash Injures Child in Willmar, MN
A child was injured in a crash between a school bus and a van in Willmar, Minn. The crash happened at about 8:30 a.m. at the intersection of 22nd Street and 20th Avenue Southwest when the two vehicles collided. Seven school-aged children were riding the bus at the time of the crash. One child was transported to CentraCare for treatment of minor injuries. The crash is under investigation.