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SALT LAKE CITY — A Davis County school bus driver arrested in October for investigation of DUI while transporting 75 children and adults to an event in Provo says migraine headaches and medication caused her to forget much of that day.
The woman also said any erratic driving likely occurred because she had to answer several radio calls while behind the wheel.
Now, Lycia Martinez, 39, of Clinton — who has not been charged in the Oct. 13 incident — is fighting to get her suspended driver's license back.
Martinez was arrested while driving a group of school children and adult supervisors on I-15. Adults on the bus started calling 911 near 3300 South saying the bus kept drifting into other lanes and was getting dangerously close to other vehicles.
"I don't get scared very easy, but my heart is pounding," a concerned woman on the bus told a 911 dispatcher.
Other motorists also called 911 about the bus. A Utah Highway Patrol trooper pulled it over near 12300 South, and Martinez was arrested for investigation of DUI.
On Nov. 6, Martinez's driver's license was suspended for six months, according to court documents. Earlier this month, Martinez filed a petition for judicial review of her license suspension.
... due to confusion with the bus schedule and understaffing at the school district, (she) received several calls on the radio in which she had to reach up for the microphone, which ... was most likely the cause for the erratic lane travel. This happened on at least three or four different occasions.
–Lycia Martinez's petition for judicial review
According to her petition, Martinez claims that "due to confusion with the bus schedule and understaffing at the school district, (she) received several calls on the radio in which she had to reach up for the microphone, which … was most likely the cause for the erratic lane travel. This happened on at least three or four different occasions."
Martinez also said in her petition that she was suffering from a migraine headache that day and that "she does not remember receiving the ticket and much of the day because of her migraine headache."
The next day, Martinez received "a shot of medication from her physician for her migraine headache, and one of the side effects is memory loss," she argues in her petition.
Because of that, Martinez contends she didn't remember that she had 10 days to contest her license suspension.
"Due to (Martinez’s) migraine headache that persisted and the added stress of a DUI citation, she did not request a driver license hearing within 10 days. The medication given to her by her physician on Oct. 14, 2014, causes loss of memory," according to her petition.
Martinez argues that her license shouldn't be suspended because the blood test that was conducted to determine if she was intoxicated came back as inconclusive.
"(Martinez) did not have any alcohol or drugs in her system that would impair her driving. The blood test that was requested was canceled because there was insufficient quantity for testing," the petition states.
The Utah Highway Patrol on Tuesday said it recently submitted additional evidence to the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office to be reviewed for possible criminal charges. The investigation was still ongoing.
