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School bus operator who ran over and killed kid in Park Forest did not have a valid license, police say

By FOX 32 Digital Staff
Published  February 12, 2023 2:49pm CST
Park Forest
FOX 32 Chicago

7-year-old boy killed by school bus in suburbs

A 7-year-old boy was struck and killed by a school bus Friday afternoon in Park Forest.

PARK FOREST, Illinois - The school bus operator who ran over and killed a child in Park Forest in January did not have a legal license at the time, police said, and will be facing a misdemeanor charge.

Connor Kasmarski, 7, was hit on Walnut Street after school on January 20. Police said that their investigation shows he was running alongside the passenger side of the bus and walked into the street directly in front of the bus. Police said there is no indication the driver knew the child had been hit.

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However, police said that the driver did not possess a legal commercial driver's license at the time. Illinois Secretary of State records show the driver's Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) and School Bus Driver endorsement had been canceled on January 8 because the driver had not provided medical examination documentation to the Secretary of State’s Office. 

The driver is thus charged with operating a commercial vehicle with a canceled CDL, a class A misdemeanor. The driver is scheduled to be in court on March 31 in Markham.

Police said that there is no sign the driver was distracted by a cell phone or other technology.