A Franklin woman is facing charges in Marion County after prosecutors say she struck and injured an teenager getting on a school bus while under the influence of illegal substances.
Melanie Mudd, 31, is charged with causing serious bodily injury when operating a vehicle with a Schedule I or II substance, a Level 5 felony, and passing a school bus when arm signal is extended causing bodily injury, a Level 6 felony. The charges were filed Monday in Marion Superior Court 31.
Around 7:18 a.m. June 26, an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department officer was driving on East Washington Street near Kitley Avenue when they saw a school bus from the Believe Charter School slowing to a stop for a red light. The bus then activated its stop arms to pick up a 13-year-old, which was at about the same time the traffic light switched from red to green, according to a probable cause affidavit.
One vehicle quickly stopped, and the 13-year-old began walking in front of it. But as they tried to walk in the left travel lane to get on the bus, they were reportedly struck by a Jeep Wrangler that failed to stop for the bus, the affidavit says.
The 13-year-old suffered “serious injuries” as they were hit, propelling them out of their shoes onto the roadway. The teen’s mother later told police the teen suffered multiple broken bones in their legs and a broken forearm, requiring surgery. The teen suffered internal bleeding and had to spend time in an intensive care unit, according to the affidavit.
Police say the driver of the Jeep Wrangler was Mudd, who stopped and stayed at the scene after the collision.
Mudd reportedly told investigators she saw the bus, but did not see that its stop arm was activated. She saw the other SUV had slowed or stopped in the right lane, so she began to slow after going through the intersection but clipped the 13-year-old, according to the affidavit.
Video of the crash scene obtained by police showed that Mudd’s SUV appeared to have not slowed down and also that it wasn’t speeding, the affidavit says.
Police say Mudd initially refused to submit to a chemical test. However, an IMPD officer allegedly smelled alcohol on Mudd’s breath, so she was taken to Sidney & Lois Eskenazi Hospital in Indianapolis. After further investigation, she did not have any signs of impairment but did consent to a blood draw, the affidavit says.
A preliminary breath test showed Mudd had no alcohol in her system, which is what the blood draw showed as well. However, her blood did test positive for two types of Delta-9 THC, as well as fentanyl and norfentanyl. Before she was taken to the hospital, Mudd reportedly said there was drug paraphernalia in a cigarette package she had but said it wasn’t hers, according to the affidavit.
A criminal record search later showed that Mudd was previously charged with operating a vehicle while intoxicated in Johnson County in 2019. She was charged with four counts of operating a vehicle while intoxicated and with a controlled substance, including endangering a minor. Mudd pled guilty to operating a vehicle while intoxicated when a minor is endangered in 2020, having the other three counts merged as part of her conviction, according to online court records.
An initial hearing has not yet been set, but a warrant has been issued for Mudd’s arrest.
