CHISAGO CITY, Minn. — Editor's Note: The above video first aired on 2/16/2024.
The woman who was charged for driving a school bus full of kids while she was drunk plead guilty to a DWI Wednesday.
Kara Ffrench, 59, of Harris, Minnesota, was charged in Chisago County back in February with two counts of driving while impaired. The complaint alleges a preliminary breath test showed her blood-alcohol content amounted to .199, despite her claims that it had been days since she consumed alcohol.
According to prosecutors, Chisago County Sheriff's Office deputies arrived at the scene on Game Avenue north of Tiger Trail in Rush City around 8:15 a.m., where they learned the bus had gone off the roadway with 45 children inside. After the kids were deemed uninjured and transferred to school by a backup driver and bus, deputies questioned Ffrench.
The complaint alleges Ffrench told deputies her foot "didn't find the brake," when asked how the bus got stuck off-road at the edge of a cornfield, just off a residential driveway area. Court documents allege that's when a deputy smelled alcohol on Ffrench's breath, and observed her carrying a water bottle and an insulated coffee mug.
After failing a field sobriety test, prosecutors said deputies believed Ffrench had added some kind of alcoholic beverage to her coffee.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.