Crime & Safety

Distracted Delivery Driver Struck Child Exiting NJ School Bus And Her Grandmother: Police

The suspect was working for a 3rd-party Amazon delivery service during the crash, which hospitalized both victims, police said.

FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP, NJ — A distracted delivery driver struck and hospitalized a child exiting her school bus and her grandmother Wednesday in Gloucester County, police said.

The driver, Laura Mayo Pulgarin, was charged with two counts of assault by auto. Pulgarin, 22, of Philadelphia, was working for a third-party Amazon delivery service and "appeared to have been distracted by utilizing a map feature on her cell phone," police said.

It happened just before 4:30 p.m. on Grant Avenue in Franklin Township. A 6-year-old student had just gotten off her school bus and was walking across the street with her grandmother.

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The bus's stop sign and red flashing lights were activated. As Pulgarin's vehicle approached, the bus driver tried to alert her by honking the horn several times.

Pulgarin continued and struck the victims, police said. They are both in stable condition as of 4 p.m. Wednesday.

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Representatives for Amazon didn't immediately respond to Patch's request for comment.

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