In a tragic turn of events, the concrete truck driver involved in the fatal Hays CISD school bus crash has been arrested in Bastrop County. According to court documents, the driver, identified as Jerry Hernandez, admitted to smoking marijuana and consuming cocaine within 24 hours of the crash.

The Texas Department of Public Safety confirmed on Friday that Hernandez, 42, was arrested on a warrant for criminally negligent homicide. Additionally, Hernandez was also arrested on an unrelated warrant for a bond violation out of Hays County.

The warrants were served at a residence in Bastrop County, and Hernandez was taken into custody without incident. The arrest comes after two lives were tragically lost in the crash - 5-year-old Ulises Rodriguez Montoya, who was on the bus, and 33-year-old Ryan Wallace, who was traveling in a vehicle behind the bus.

According to the affidavit, Hernandez confessed to investigators that he had smoked marijuana around 10 p.m. the night before the crash and had consumed cocaine around 1 a.m. on the morning of the accident. Furthermore, documents revealed that he had only slept for about three hours prior to the crash.

The Texas Department of Public Safety had previously confirmed that a warrant was issued for a specimen of Hernandez's blood to be taken from the Bastrop District County Court as part of the investigation.

The incident occurred on March 22 when a concrete truck veered into the bus' lane on State Highway 21 near Caldwell Road. The impact caused the bus to roll over, resulting in multiple injuries and the tragic loss of lives.

Unfortunately, the bus did not have seat belts, a fact that has raised concerns within the community. Hays CISD Superintendent Dr. Eric Wright acknowledged this issue and stated that the district is working to accelerate the process of replacing buses without seat belts. The plan is to equip the entire fleet of route buses with seat belts, with the next round of buses expected to arrive in 3-4 weeks.

The investigation into the crash is being conducted by the Texas Department of Public Safety's crash reconstruction team. Meanwhile, the community mourns the loss of young Ulises Rodriguez Montoya and Ryan Wallace, as efforts are made to prevent similar tragedies in the future.