Last weekend, a 25-year-old woman fatally fell from a party bus returning from a concert at Shoreline Amphitheatre in Mountain View.
Natasha Noland and another young woman, both highly inebriated, allegedly began physically fighting and Noland fell from the bus and died after the bus ran over her. All the passengers--some underage-- on the bus driving on Highway 17 in Los Gatos were too drunk to recall exact details, but the bus driver was sober, .
Under California law, party bus owners and drivers do not assume responsibility for their passengers, in contrast to limousine companies that do.
Assemblyman Jerry Hill introduced his bill, AB 45, a year and a half ago to hold bus drivers and owners (in addition to limousine companies) accountable for under-age drinking.
The measure has passed in the Assembly and is working its way through the Senate.
Should bus drivers be held accountable for their passengers' behavior? Share your thoughts with us in the comment section.
