After deliberating two hours Wednesday, jurors in Hamilton County Criminal Court did not reach a verdict in the case of a 25-year-old bus driver charged with killing six elementary school students.
They will continue their work on the Johnthony Walker case Thursday at 8:45 a.m.
Jurors had a big Wednesday: They heard the rest of the state’s proof, watched Walker dispute it on the witness stand, and listened to closing arguments from prosecutors and Walker’s defense attorney.
Johnthony Walker, 25, testifies during his criminal trial Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2018 in Judge Don Poole’s courtroom at the Hamilton County Courthouse in Chattanooga, Tenn. Prosecutors have charged Walker with 34 crimes, including six counts of vehicular homicide, seven counts of assault and 18 counts of reckless aggravated assault.
Prosecutors said Walker, 25, lost control of his school bus on Nov. 21, 2016, because he was traveling 50 mph on a narrow, curvy road in Brainerd and using his cellphone. Walker ultimately crashed into a walnut tree, killing six of the 37 Woodmore Elementary School students onboard.
Since the trial began Tuesday, prosecutors have called eyewitnesses who saw Walker speeding, traffic officers who reconstructed the scene, and a medical examiner who said the dead children’s injuries were consistent with a bus crash.