Semi driver pleads not guilty to charges related to Tusky Valley bus crash that killed six

A Zanesville man pleaded not guilty Tuesday to more than two dozen criminal counts related to a November bus crash that killed six people and injured 18 others on Interstate 70 in Etna Township.

Jacob D. McDonald, 61, pleaded not guilty to 26 counts, including six of aggravated vehicle homicide in Licking County Common Pleas Court. He also faces nine counts of vehicular assault and 11 counts of assault.

In court documents, prosecutors allege McDonald failed to slow down when driving a semitractor-trailer that caused a chain reaction crash in Licking County on Nov. 14. The semitractor-trailer hit a car that had slowed down in front of it.

The car then collided with a charter bus carrying 54 students and chaperones from Tuscarawas Valley Local Schools. Three students on the bus were killed, as were a teacher and two chaperones in the car.

Previous coverage: Ohio crash: What we know about the charter bus, truck collision leaving 6 dead, 18 injured

McDonald remains at the Licking County Jail on a $1 million bond . He appeared via video conference from the jail during Tuesday’s arraignment.

An attorney representing McDonald argued that his bond was “excessive,” citing McDonald’s resources and likelihood that he would not commit the same crime.

A Licking County prosecutor called McDonald’s bond “reasonable,” alleging that he did not make any effort to avoid the crash. The prosecutor also alleged that there were “large amounts of data” traced to McDonald’s phone minutes before and during the crash.

Advocate reporter Josué Perez can be reached at jhperez@newarkadvocate.com .

This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Semi driver pleads not guilty to charges related to Tusky Valley bus crash that killed six