School bus driver charged with DWI after crashing into home

WEST CALDWELL, N.J. (News 12) - Police say a school bus driver who crashed into a New Jersey home was driving drunk at the time.

Anthony Stuckey, 37, faces charges of driving while intoxicated and 15 counts of endangering the welfare of a child. The school bus driver had just dropped off students at Essex County Technical School when his bus slammed into a home around 8:30 a.m. Friday in West Caldwell, New Jersey.

Police pulled Stuckey out of the wreckage, and he was treated for minor injuries on scene. No one else was on the bus at the time of the crash.

It appears the bus driver failed to manage a tight turn nearby. Police were investigating to see if there was another cause for the crash.

“It can be managed, but people who are driving at excessive speed limit or not paying attention, it creeps up on them quick,” said Police Chief Dennis Capriglione.

Police also say that Stuckey did not have a proper commercial driver’s license to operate the bus.

Neighbors have seen similar accidents in the area previously, which is why there is a steel barricade to protect homes as drivers come around the bend in the road.

In this case, Stuckey seemed to oversteer. Police say he crossed the dividing line and clipped a black minivan before careening into the house.

The homeowner is a man named Siva Thangam. He left around 5:15 a.m. to get to work at Stevens Institute of Technology, where he teaches.

The crash left the home’s foundation compromised, which means Thangam will have to find somewhere else to live until repairs can be made.

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