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Trial begins against bus company in deadly fire during Hurricane Rita
By Associated Press
Monday, September 25, 2006 - Updated: 07:25 AM EST

McALLEN, Texas - A year ago, investigators were combing through the wreckage of a bus fire that killed 23 nursing home residents fleeing Hurricane Rita.

The results of their probe may change the way people with special needs are evacuated and the way commercial buses are regulated.

In a trial set to begin with jury selection Monday, James H. Maples, president and director of Global Limo Inc., will face federal charges he conspired to falsify driver time records and failed to inspect buses to ensure their safety.

The conspiracy charge, the most serious in the three-count indictment, carries up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If the company is convicted on that charge, it could be fined $500,000.

The accident is believed to have been caused by an overheated bearing in the rear wheel well, probably the result of poor maintenance. The tire ignited and the fire engulfed the bus, then probably caused oxygen canisters to explode, investigators said.

Thirty-seven nursing home residents were on the bus evacuating Houston ahead of the Rita when the bus caught fire on a freeway near Dallas. Many were disabled and unable to escape.

Since then, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued new guidelines for carrying medical oxygen, recommending that tanks be secured in an upright position and limited to one canister per patient in the passenger compartment.

The National Transportation Safety Board held a two-day hearing in August to examine state and federal oversight of motor coach companies.

Global Limo was shut down two weeks after the accident.

In May, victims reached an $11 million settlement with Global and with BusBank, the travel broker that hired the bus.

Prosecutors have said the trial will focus on the company’s management leading up to the accident.

The conspiracy charge in the indictment alleges that drivers operated in pairs, with one driving and the other resting in the passenger seat. There was no sleeper berth for the resting driver as required by law and indicated in driver logs.

Drivers were allegedly directed to falsely record their passenger-seat time as “off duty” to get around the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s rules for maximum consecutive driving time.

“Those actions resulted in Global Limo bus drivers driving in a tired and fatigued condition, at risk of causing accidents on the nation’s highways and elsewhere,” the indictment states.

The other charges allege that Maples and his company knowingly and willingly failed to inspect and maintain the buses.

Maples, 67, has been operating tour buses since 1987 and incorporated Global Limo on July 17, 2002. He has spent the last year free on $75,000 bond.

“We’re looking forward to presenting the case to the jury and being vindicated of the charges leveled against him,” said defense attorney Charles Banker.

The bus driver, Juan Robles, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, was cleared of charges in exchange for his cooperation. He was directed to stay in Texas as a material witness.

“I’m sure he’s grateful that almost a year after the fact this matter is finally going to be resolved,” said George Shaffer, a San Antonio-based attorney hired by the Mexican consulate to defend him.



© Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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bh.heraldinteractive.com: news1.bostonherald.com: 0.357079:Mon, 25 Sep 2006 11:25:38 GMT

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http://www.kristv.com/Global/story.asp?S=5457538

Bus trial may not include testimony on fatal wreck

McALLEN, Texas -- Prosecutors were to begin presenting evidence Tuesday that the operator of a bus that erupted into a fire that killed 23 nursing home residents fleeing Hurricane Rita failed in inspecting his fleet and falsified logs meant to ensure drivers got adequate sleep.


But a lawyer for James H. Maples, president and director of Global Limo Inc., said he wants the trial to be about alleged mismanagement leading up to the accident, not the headline-making wreck itself.

"The charges aren't related to the bus accident," attorney Charles Banker said outside the courtroom. "The whole idea is, we want a fair and impartial jury that won't be influenced by information that's not related to the charges."

A jury of eight men and four women was selected Monday after about two hours of questioning from U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa.

The witness list includes several safety investigators and Global bus drivers, including Juan Robles, who was driving the bus carrying Houston nursing home residents when it exploded on a freeway near Dallas during the evacuation before Hurricane Rita on Sept. 23, 2005.

The list does not include accident survivors or rescue workers.

Hinojosa ruled that any evidence not directly related to the charges in the indictment cannot be presented without lawyers proving to him that the evidence is relevant.

Of the pool of 43 prospective jurors, about a dozen said they had seen, heard or read media reports of Global's involvement in the wreck. Several were excluded after saying they had been bus drivers or worked in the industry.

The most serious of the charges in the three-count indictment is the charge of conspiring to falsify records, which carries a sentence of up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If the company is convicted on that charge, it could be fined $500,000.

Maples, wearing a dark suit, sat quietly in the courtroom with his wife, daughter and a church member while potential jurors gathered in an adjacent room. The former NFL player appeared in good spirits, even making a mock golf swing after the pretrial motions were argued.

The accident is believed to have been caused by an overheated bearing in the rear wheel well, probably the result of poor maintenance. The tire ignited and the fire engulfed the bus, then probably caused oxygen canisters to explode, investigators said.

Many of the 37 nursing home residents on the bus were disabled and unable to escape.

Since then, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued new guidelines for carrying medical oxygen, recommending that tanks be secured in an upright position and limited to one canister per patient in the passenger compartment.

The National Transportation Safety Board held a two-day hearing in August to examine state and federal oversight of motor coach companies.

Global Limo was shut down two weeks after the accident.

In May, victims reached an $11 million settlement with Global and with BusBank, the travel broker that hired the bus.

Maples, 67, has been operating tour buses since 1987 and incorporated Global Limo on July 17, 2002. He has spent the last year free on $75,000 bond. Banker said he's confident Maples will be vindicated.

Bus driver Robles, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, was cleared of charges in exchange for his cooperation. He was directed to stay in Texas as a material witness.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hea ... 13933.html

Sept. 25, 2006, 9:42PM
Jurors won't hear about bus blaze
Judge approves defense motion to limit testimony to allegations of mismanagement


By JAMES PINKERTON
Copyright 2006 Houston Chronicle

MCALLEN - Jurors today will hear about maintenance and safety practices of charter bus company Global Limo Inc. but not about the bus fire that killed 23 nursing home residents evacuated from Houston last year as Hurricane Rita bore down.

U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa granted a defense motion to limit testimony to alleged mismanagement that occurred during a four-month period before last year's accident.

James H. Maples, president and director of Pharr-based Global, faces charges he falsified driver time records and failed to adequately inspect and maintain his fleet of buses. The company was shut down for safety violations two weeks after the September 2005 accident.

Lawyers for Maples, a 67-year-old retired NFL player, have said that he looks forward to clearing his name.

An eight-woman, four-man jury was selected late Monday after two hours of questioning.

"I believe it's going to a fair and impartial jury," said defense attorney Charles Banker.

During jury selection, Justice Department prosecutors informed the court they plan to call Juan Robles Gutierrez, an undocumented immigrant from Monterrey who was driving the bus when the fire erupted near Dallas. His family has said Robles did all he could to stop the fire, but oxygen bottles needed by many elderly nursing home residents exploded as the fire spread from a rear wheel well.

Based on the judge's statements Monday, it appears testimony from Robles will be limited to his experiences with the company before the accident.

Robles was arrested on an immigration charge — unlawful entry to the U.S. — shortly after the accident, but he has been allowed to remain in Texas to testify.

Maples is accused of conspiring to falsify driver time records. If convicted, he could receive up to five years in prison on that charge alone.

The three-count indictment alleged that Global falsely recorded its drivers as ''off-duty" when they were actually riding as passengers, a violation of Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations.

After the jury was excused Monday, Assistant U.S. Attorney John Kinchen of Houston received permission from the judge to introduce documents Maples signed in 2002 and 2004 acknowledging federal bus safety standards and agreeing to comply with them.

In May, victims of the bus fire reached a $11 million settlement with Global and BusBank, the Chicago travel broker that hired the bus company. At the time of the Sept. 23 fire, Global Limo had filed for bankruptcy.

james.pinkerton@chron.com

"The bus driver, Juan Robles, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, was cleared of charges in exchange for his cooperation. He was directed to stay in Texas as a material witness."

No doubt if that driver was an American citizen he would still be sitting in jail.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/met ... 15398.html

Sept. 26, 2006, 11:50AM
Prosecutor says bus operator ordered drivers to falsify log books


By LYNN BREZOSKY
Associated Press

McALLEN — The operator of a bus that exploded and killed 23 nursing home residents during the Hurricane Rita evacuation directed drivers to falsify logs, work more than two days straight without adequate rest and operate poorly maintained vehicles, a prosecutor said today.

The attorney for James H. Maples, president and director of Global Limo Inc., responded in his opening argument that the government has no evidence to prove its claims.

Both sides made their opening arguments in the first day of the trial of Maples and his company on federal charges that he conspired to falsify driver time records and failed to inspect buses to ensure their safety.

The most serious of the charges in the three-count indictment is the charge of conspiring to falsify records, which carries a sentence of up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If the company is convicted on that charge, it could be fined $500,000.

Assistant U.S. Attorney John Kinchen told the jury of eight men and four women that drivers were directed to falsify logs and stay on duty up to 30 hours without adequate rest.

Maples, he said, only maintained buses to "keep the wheels rolling and make money."

"They were directed by the owner who told them to falsify the schedules," he said. "They'll tell you the reason they followed the schedules was because they needed a job."

Kinchen said Maples promised federal regulators stating he would provide special logbook training but never provided it. He also said the buses were "compromised steering, bad brakes, major things, but the buses still went out on the road."

Maples' attorney, Charles Banker, said prosecutors took a "shoot first, we'll pick up the pieces later" approach, and suggested the drivers were simply confused by new safety laws or just made mistakes.

"There's no evidence that Mr. Maples told any bus driver to falsify those logs," he said.

Banker said drivers were "willing to say what the federal government wants them to say" out of self-preservation.

"They were confused. They didn't do the logs right. And we're here to prosecute Mr. Maples?"

Banker said Maples, a former NFL player, sometimes was late paying drivers and other employees because he was spending so much money on maintenance for his small fleet of buses.

The witness list includes several safety investigators and Global bus drivers, including Juan Robles, who was driving the bus carrying Houston nursing home residents when it exploded on a freeway near Dallas during the evacuation before Hurricane Rita on Sept. 23, 2005.

The list does not include accident survivors or rescue workers.

U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa ruled that any evidence not directly related to the charges in the indictment cannot be presented without lawyers proving to him that the evidence is relevant.

The accident is believed to have been caused by an overheated bearing in the rear wheel well, probably the result of poor maintenance. The tire ignited and the fire engulfed the bus, then probably caused oxygen canisters to explode, investigators said.

Many of the 37 nursing home residents on the bus were disabled and unable to escape.

Since then, the U.S. Department of Transportation issued new guidelines for carrying medical oxygen, recommending that tanks be secured in an upright position and limited to one canister per patient in the passenger compartment.

The National Transportation Safety Board held a two-day hearing in August to examine state and federal oversight of motor coach companies.

Global Limo was shut down two weeks after the accident.

In May, victims reached an $11 million settlement with Global and with BusBank, the travel broker that hired the bus.

Maples, 67, has been operating tour buses since 1987 and incorporated Global Limo on July 17, 2002. He has spent the last year free on $75,000 bond. Banker said he's confident Maples will be vindicated.

Bus driver Robles, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, was cleared of charges in exchange for his cooperation. He was directed to stay in Texas as a material witness.




http://www.sanluisobispo.com/mld/sanlui ... 607135.htm

Posted on Tue, Sep. 26, 2006

Prosecutor: Bus company had shoddy fleet

LYNN BREZOSKY
Associated Press

McALLEN, Texas - The operator of a bus that exploded and killed 23 nursing home residents during the Hurricane Rita evacuation poorly maintained his vehicles and had drivers work excessively long shifts and lie about them, a prosecutor said in his opening statement Tuesday.

The attorney for James H. Maples, 67, president and director of Global Limo Inc., who along with his company is accused of conspiring to falsify driver time records and failing to inspect buses to ensure their safety, said the government has no evidence to prove its claims.

Assistant U.S. Attorney John Kinchen told the jury that Maples only maintained buses to "keep the wheels rolling and make money."

He said the buses had "compromised steering, bad brakes, major things, but (they) still went out on the road."

Thirty-seven nursing home residents were on one of Maples' buses evacuating Houston ahead of Hurricane Rita when it caught fire Sept. 23, 2005, on a freeway near Dallas. Many were disabled and unable to escape.

The accident is believed to have been caused by an overheated bearing in the rear wheel well, probably the result of poor maintenance. The tire ignited and the fire engulfed the bus, then probably caused oxygen canisters to explode, investigators said.

Kinchen said drivers were directed to falsify logs and stay on duty up to 30 hours without adequate rest. "They'll tell you the reason they followed the schedules was because they needed a job," he said.

Maples' attorney, Charles Banker, said his client was innocent and accused prosecutors of taking a "shoot first, we'll pick up the pieces later" approach.

Banker said drivers were "willing to say what the federal government wants them to say" to avoid being charged themselves, and suggested the drivers were simply confused by new safety laws or just made mistakes.

"They were confused. They didn't do the logs right. And we're here to prosecute Mr. Maples?"

He said Maples spent so much maintaining his small fleet of buses he was sometimes late paying drivers and other employees.

The witness list includes several safety inspectors and bus drivers, including Juan Robles, who was driving the bus that exploded. Robles, an illegal immigrant from Mexico, was cleared of charges in exchange for his cooperation.

U.S. District Judge Ricardo Hinojosa ruled any evidence not directly related to the charges in the indictment cannot be presented without lawyers proving to him that the evidence is relevant.

The most serious of the charges in the three-count indictment against Maples is the conspiracy charge, which carries up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. If the company is convicted on that charge, it could be fined $500,000.

The conspiracy charge alleges that drivers operated in pairs, with one driving and the other resting in the passenger seat. There was no sleeper berth for the resting driver as required by law and indicated in driver logs.

The other charges allege that Maples and his company knowingly and willingly failed to inspect and maintain the buses.

Maples, a former NFL player, has spent the last year free on $75,000 bond.

Global Limo was shut down two weeks after the accident. In May, victims reached an $11 million settlement with Global and BusBank, the travel broker that hired the bus.

Since the wreck, the U.S. Department of Transportation has issued new guidelines for carrying medical oxygen, recommending that tanks be secured in an upright position and limited to one canister per patient in the passenger compartment.




http://www.themonitor.com/SiteProcessor ... ion=Valley

Jury hears opening arguments in Global Limo trial
September 27,2006
Marc B. Geller
Monitor Staff Writer


McALLEN — The Pharr-based bus operator indicted in connection with last year’s fatal bus fire near Dallas placed unsafe buses on the road and told his drivers to falsify their logs, prosecutors said during the opening arguments of a federal criminal trial that began Tuesday.

The attorney for defendant James H. Maples, 65, of McAllen, and his company, Global Limo Inc., tried to shift blame for log irregularities onto the drivers, though, and argued that the federal government has been prejudiced against Maples and Global Limo since the start of its investigation.

Maples and Global Limo were the operators of the bus that caught fire and exploded Sept. 23, 2005, south of Dallas in Wilmer, killing 23 elderly passengers as they fled their Houston assisted-living facility before Hurricane Rita struck.

In the wake of the accident, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration ordered Maples and Global Limo to halt bus operations.

Both the man and his company are charged with conspiring with others to falsify driver time records and willfully failing to inspect and maintain buses to ensure safe operation during a period spanning May 5, 2005, to Aug 24, 2005.

A federal grand jury issued its indictment in the case in late January on three separate counts. The charges stem from an investigation launched after the fire, but are not directly related to the accident.

In fact, the only allusion to the tragedy during the trial Tuesday was as vague as it was fleeting.

Assistant U.S. Attorney John Kinchen told the jury of four men and eight women that they would hear drivers admit that they wrongly falsified their logs, marking that they were off duty when they were actually on duty but not driving.

"James H. Maples is the one that directed them to do that," Kinchen said.

He added that Maples did not comply with federal regulations requiring him to ensure his drivers filled out their daily logs.

"Because of that, these vehicles were put out on the road in an unsafe condition," he said.

Kinchen told jurors the Global Limo buses had mechanical problems with their brakes and steering, and he said Maples made sure his buses kept running as long as there was money to be made.

Charles Banker accused the federal government of shooting first and asking questions later in its approach to its investigation.

He told jurors that one of the federal agents who showed up at Global Limo two days after the bus fire told the company’s compliance consultant, "We’re going to shut you down."

"That attitude on the part of the federal government has informed the whole investigation," Banker said.

He denied that Maples told drivers to cook the books.

"There is no evidence that Mr. Maples told any bus driver to falsify their logs," he said. "There will be no testimony from drivers to that effect either."

He said the drivers attended mandatory meetings during which Global Limo compliance consultant Juan Jauregui informed them about applicable laws and instructed them as to what they needed to do to comply. But the drivers were "confused" and didn’t follow the laws as directed, Banker said.

Furthermore, he said, they have a vested interest in avoiding indictment as co-conspirators.

"They’re willing to come in and say things that the government wants them to say," Banker said.

He added that Maples spent about $65,000 on maintenance for four or five buses during the roughly 3 1/2-month-period covered in the indictment — even if it meant not paying employees on time, including drivers, or it meant not paying himself at all.

Banker said the $65,000 included $20,000 alone for maintenance on bus No. 717 — the one involved in the fatal fire — "to keep it running in a safe condition."

The government called its first two witnesses Tuesday: Duane Baker, a special agent with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration who was involved in the Global Limo investigation, and Francisco Sanchez, a former Global Limo driver.

Comparing driver logs to those of their co-drivers and, in some cases, to trip itineraries the drivers received from Maples, Baker testified there were multiple log violations that pointed to drivers not getting the amount of rest time federal regulations require between stints at the wheel or on duty.

Regulations for hours of service make clear that drivers may only get the required eight continuous hours of rest on the bus if they spend the time in a sleeper berth, but none of the Global Limo buses were equipped with such compartments.

Sanchez, speaking through a court interpreter, testified in Spanish that Global Limo did not provide him any training during his seven months as a driver other than having him watch safe-driving videos that were in English.

He admitted to several instances in which he marked on daily logs that he was off duty when he was actually on duty but not driving — ostensibly resting in a passenger seat even though that constitutes an on-duty status under the federal regulations.

Sanchez also testified that some of the itineraries Maples gave drivers made it impossible for them to get the eight straight hours of rest federal regulations require after every 10 hours of driving or 15 hours on duty. He testified, too, that he never met Jauregui or received any instructions from him.

Maples faces a maximum sentence of seven years in prison if convicted of all charges, and a maximum of $450,000 in total fines. Global Limo faces maximum fines of $900,000 if convicted of all charges.

U.S. District Court Judge Ricardo H. Hinojosa indicated Tuesday the trial may be shorter than the attorneys anticipated.

"This case should not take two weeks to try or any large amount of time to try," he said. "The allegations here are not complicated."

Marc B. Geller covers McAllen and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4445.