PINE COUNTY, Minn. — A woman from Willow River is facing multiple charges after the vehicle she was allegedly driving nearly struck two children who were crossing the road after exiting a school bus.
A criminal complaint filed in Pine County charges 28-year-old Brianna Constance Johnson with reckless driving and failing to stop for a school bus in connection with the incident, which occurred around 3:20 p.m. on Dec. 21 and was captured on video.
Pine County Sheriff's Office deputies responded to a report of a school bus stop arm violation and were provided video surveillance footage from the transportation supervisor of the Willow River Area School District.
The video shows the school bus stopped on County Road 41, a two-lane road, with its stop arm extended as a large van approaches and stops for the bus. Two children exit the bus and one crosses the road toward their parent.
In the background of the video, a red Ford Ranger is seen approaching the van from behind, seemingly at a high rate of speed. The truck swerves around the van into the dirt shoulder, before reentering the roadway, seemingly ignoring the stop sign and nearly colliding with the second child who was crossing the street.
After an initial investigation, deputies located the truck that ran the stop sign, but were unable to locate the driver, according to the charging documents.
Deputies ran the Ranger's license plate and registration information only to find its registered owner was deceased.
The deputies found a lottery ticket in the truck, which led them to a man who said he acquired the truck from a friend without a title.
The man said he sold the vehicle for $200 a couple of days before the school bus incident because it lacked brakes. Video footage from a convenience store showed that the man had been driving the truck on the day of the incident.
According to the charging documents, the person who agreed to buy the truck asked the man to fix it after the purchase was completed.
The seller was unable to fix the truck and the buyer's partner, 28-year-old Brianna Johnson, asked to use the seller's truck to go to a store. Johnson never returned from her trip to the store.
Johnson is not currently in custody according to the Pine County Sheriff's jail roster.
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