Naperville woman crashed school bus while driving under the influence, prosecutors say

LOMBARD, Ill. - A Naperville woman was arrested this week for allegedly crashing a school bus while driving under the influence.

Lauren Williams, 34, faces one count of aggravated DUI as a school bus driver and one count of driving too fast for conditions or failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.

At about 12:50 p.m. on Monday, the Lombard Police Department received a call for a crash involving a school bus that transports special needs children and an in-ground junction box in the 300 block of West St. Charles Road.

When officers arrived, they found Williams allegedly sitting in the driver's seat of the bus talking on her phone.

While investigating the crash, police determined that after Williams dropped off the last of her passengers, she drove off the road, over a curb and struck the in-ground junction box.

After the crash, Williams allegedly drove the bus to a nearby Walgreens parking lot, where officers found her.

At the time of the crash, the only individuals on the bus were Williams and an aide to the children.

When speaking with officers, Williams allegedly showed signs of impairment including slow/delayed speech, droopy eyelids and trouble keeping her eyes open.

She was taken into custody at that time.

"The allegations that Ms. Williams was under the influence of an intoxicating substance while she was driving a school bus full of children are disturbing," said DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin. "The type of behavior alleged in this case that put the lives of the children on the bus, as well as those of the motoring public, in danger will not be tolerated in DuPage County. Thankfully, there were no children aboard the bus at the time of the crash and Ms. Williams’ alleged actions did not harm anyone."

On Tuesday, a judge granted the state's motion to deny pre-trial release for Williams.

Her next court appearance is scheduled for Oct. 7.