The parents of a 14-year-old girl who was injured when a bus carrying her and dozens of other members of her high school band overturned last month are planning to sue their Long Island school district, accusing it of negligently hiring the bus company despite its history of safety violations.
Kimberley and Corey Ellis filed a notice of claim against the Farmingdale school district, alleging negligence in the bus crash that killed two teachers and left five students in critical condition.
Farmingdale school officials had hired Nesconset-based Regency Transportation LTD, which had been cited for federal safety violations more than two dozen times — and was on a recent list of “unacceptable operators.”
The Ellises are seeking $10 million for injuries including broken ribs, lung damage, head wounds and disfigurement to the couple’s saxophone-playing daughter, along with $2 million for damages to her parents and the cost of her medical and psychological care, according to the notice obtained by The Post.
“The school has a responsibility to act when the students are in their custody, and they failed to do that,” Jared Cooper, a partner at Manhattan-based Robinson Yablon Cooper & Bonfante, LLP, told The Post.
He claims Farmingdale “recklessly” failed to tell parents that Regency had been placed by New York state on the list of “unacceptable operators” and failed to ensure the bus was “safely and properly owned.”
The notice of claim also argues that the district did not properly train personnel in safety procedures and did not require students to wear seat belts, Newsday reports.
Cooper also added that the bus company was “woefully underinsured to be carrying 30 students” and will not have “adequate insurance” to cover all of the claims — which he said will be a major argument in the Ellises’ lawsuit.
A notice of claim is required whenever a public entity is being sued.
The lawsuit against the Farmingdale school district and Regency Transportation is forthcoming.
The bus company has been cited for 25 violations since 2021 — failing five inspections in the 2023 fiscal year, according to records from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
Among the violations were “defective bus emergency exits,” “inoperable brake lamps” and “inoperable headlamps,” as well as oil and grease leaks, the agency records show.
Regency was placed on the state’s most recent list of “unacceptable operators” because of the failed inspections, according to lohud.com.
Despite the violations and crash last year, the company still had “valid operating authority from the State Department of Transportation and a valid semi-annual inspection,” officials stated, noting that the unidentified driver from the crash was also “properly licensed.”
The Post has reached out to the Farmingdale School District and Regency Transportation for comment.
In an unsigned statement to Newsday, school officials said lawyers advised them not to comment on the lawsuit.
“Our focus has been, and will continue to be, doing whatever we can to bring our community together and provide the resources that will help us all cope with the emotions and trauma associated with this tragedy, both individually and collectively.”
