Truck Driver Arraigned For School Bus Collision

(Columbia County) In Columbia County court, an Indianapolis truck driver was arraigned Wednesday on charges that he injured 26 people in a collision with a school bus. Wayne Murphy entered a not guilty plea to ten felony counts of Injury by Intoxicated Use Of A Vehicle and Second Degree Reckless Injury. The 42-year-old was allegedly under the influence of the prescription drug Xanax when his semi-truck smashed into the bus May 23 on Interstate 39 in the Town of Arlington. There were 33 passengers on the bus, primarily middle school age children from a Milwaukee-area private school who were on their way to the Wisconsin Dells. Of the 26 people hurt, five sustained critical injuries. If convicted, he faces up to 12-and-a-half years in prison on each count. Murphy remains jailed on a $35-thousand-dollar cash bond.