Teen Driver Charged In School Bus Crash In Cartersville

CARTERSVILLE, GA — A student at the Bartow County College and Career Academy was charged in connection to an accident involving a school bus Monday morning in Cartersville.

According to the Georgia State Patrol, a Bartow County School System bus was leaving the Academy and was trying to make a left turn onto Grassdale Road around 11:40 a.m. May 14.

A 2002 Chevrolet Impala, which was traveling westbound on Grassdale Road, ran a red light, and the school bus hit the driver's side of the passenger vehicle, GSP said.

The Impala, driven by 17-year-old student Zoreh Martinez-Sanchez, fled the scene, the state patrol added. The car, Bartow County schools spokesperson Alisha Evans, said was found about two miles from the scene of the crash by a Bartow County sheriff's deputy with the help of a 9-1-1 caller and two school police officers. Evans said about 19 Woodland High School students were on the bus at the time of the crash.

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Martinez-Sanchez was charged with hit-and-run, driving while unlicensed and failure to obey traffic control device. The Georgia State Patrol said no injuries were reported in the collision. However, the school bus sustained minor damage while the Impala received "disabling damage," the state agency said.

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