Columbia, MO : 19-year-old man allegedly was high on methadone when the Grand Cherokee he was driving rear-ended a school bus on Thursday morning September 4th 2014

A 19-year-old man allegedly was high on methadone when the Jeep Grand Cherokee he was driving rear-ended a school bus Thursday morning south of Columbia. The crash happened at 8:13 a.m. on eastbound Route AB about a half-mile east of Highway 63, according to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report. A 1996 Jeep driven by Devin L. Barnes of Columbia rear-ended a 2008 IC Corp. school bus driven by Debra Ruppert, 57, of Columbia, the patrol said. Barnes, whose address is listed as 9525 E. Logan Road, is charged with driving while intoxicated — drug intoxication, and his bond was set at $10,000, cash-only, according to court records. Bond conditions include that Barnes not operate a motor vehicle and not consume any intoxicants, according to court records. Barnes was released from the Boone County Jail after posting bond. A highway patrol trooper heard over the radio that a Jeep was driving in a careless and imprudent manner on northbound Highway 63 near Columbia Regional Airport and moments later, at 8:16 a.m., was advised of the crash on Route AB, according to a probable cause statement. When the trooper got to the scene, he noticed Barnes’ car fit the description of the one driving carelessly on the highway and proceeded to give him a breath-alcohol test. The test results were negative. However, the statement said, while Barnes was in the trooper’s vehicle, the trooper noticed his eyes were glassy, his speech was slurred and his pupils were constricted. After a vision test, the trooper determined Barnes was intoxicated. Barnes told him he took medication for heartburn, and the trooper asked him to recite the alphabet or count from one to 100, to which Barnes replied by requesting an attorney. “Shortly thereafter, Barnes told me he was not stupid and knew that I knew he took methadone,” the statement said. In February, Barnes pleaded guilty to operating a motor vehicle in a careless and imprudent manner involving an accident and was sentenced to two years’ unsupervised probation, according to court records. In May, Barnes was charged with driving while intoxicated — drug intoxication. He pleaded not guilty in that case, and a trial is scheduled for Oct. 7, according to court records. Barnes’ May DWI charge also was related to methadone, which, according to a probable cause statement in the case, he said he takes because of a heroin addiction. Barnes suffered minor injuries during yesterday’s crash and refused treatment at the scene, the patrol said. Barnes and Ruppert were wearing seat belts at the time of the crash, the patrol said. The school bus, which was driven from the scene, sustained moderate damage, while the Jeep, which was towed from the scene, sustained extensive damage, the patrol said. Martina Pounds of the Boone County Fire Protection District, which responded to the crash, said yesterday morning that Barnes was blinded by the sun and did not see the school bus, which was stopped when it was rear-ended. The bus was doing the morning route for Battle High School at the time of the crash, Columbia Public Schools spokeswoman Michelle Baumstark said. Only one Battle student was on board at the time of the crash. The student was not injured, and another bus came to take that student to school, she said. Source : Man charged with DWI after crash involving school bus