MONROE COUNTY, Ind. -- The bus driver involved in a Monroe County crash that killed three people in July had methamphetamine in his system at the time of the crash, according to criminal charges filed this week.
Brian L. Hodges, 46, of New Albany, Indiana, was arrested Friday by Indiana State Police troopers on a warrant out of Monroe County.
Hodges was driving a Miller Transport bus on July 22 when it crashed into a minivan near the intersection of U.S. 37 and Old State Road 37 North, killing three people.
PREVIOUS | Three people killed in bus crash in Monroe County
The victims, 54-year-old Rose Pettus, 30-year-old Shante Lewis and 30-year-old Orlando Lewis Jr., were all residents of Greenwood, Indiana.
A toddler in the van at the time survived the crash. Three other people were injured as a result of a chain reaction crash the collision caused.
According to a statement from the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department on Friday, a chemical test determined Hodges had amphetamines and methamphetamine in his system at the time of the crash.
Investigators also used the onboard GPS system to determine the bus was traveling at 65 miles per hour at the time of the crash, despite it occurring in a clearly marked 30-mile-per-hour construction zone.
Hodges faces three counts of causing death while operating a vehicle with a Schedule I or II controlled substance in his blood, three counts of reckless homicide, and two counts of causing serious bodily injury when operating a vehicle with a Schedule I or II substance in the body.
Hodges was being held at the Monroe County Correction Center on a $20,000 bond.
MORE FROM THE CRIME BEAT | The ‘Grundy Crew’ has a long history in Indianapolis. It may have caught up with them. | PC: Man murdered over missing drugs belonging to the ‘Mexican Mafia’ | Why are .40-calibers surging in Indy as crime guns? | Message written in blood leads IMPD to murder suspect | MAP: 2017 Indianapolis Homicides
