A Look Back To May, 1988

In May of 1988 – 27 years ago – four adults and more than sixty teenagers from the Assembly of God in Radcliff, Kentucky, boarded their church bus – a refurbished school bus – and headed for the fun and recreation offered at Kings Island, a theme park north of Cincinnati and about 170 miles from Radcliff. The youth group enjoyed a long and fun-filled spring day at Kings Island. On the return trip, they filled their 60-gallon gas tank just before rolling back into Kentucky. Shortly after they crossed the state and Carroll County line, at about 11:00 p.m., a small pickup truck moving in the wrong direction on Interstate 71 smashed head-on into the church bus.

27 people died in the worst drunk driving incident in U.S. history that night. 34 were injured.
You should understand that most drivers charged with DUI don’t hurt anyone or even cause property damage. Most DUI arrests are for first-offense misdemeanors, and tragedies like the “Kentucky School Bus Crash” are rare. But they happen. If you are charged with DUI in the Chicago area, contact an experienced Chicago DUI lawyer as quickly as possible. You’re going to need good legal help immediately.

The small pickup truck driven by 34-year-old Larry Wayne Mahoney crashed into the right front of the converted school bus, driving the leaf spring into a gas tank that both ruptured and jammed the front exit. Seat covers and foam padding ignited within seconds, thick smoke filled the interior of the bus, and the temperature rose by about 2,000 degrees in two minutes. Kentucky law now requires all school buses in that state to have nine emergency exits. We all need to be reminded what can happen if we drink before driving. If you are arrested for DUI in Illinois, fight the charge and contact an experienced Chicago DUI lawyer as quickly as possible.