Davis County school bus driver charged with DUI


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SALT LAKE CITY — A Davis County school bus driver who was stopped and arrested in October while transporting 75 people to a school event in Provo has been charged with DUI.

Lycia Kae Martinez, 39, of Clearfield, is charged in 3rd District Court with DUI, a class A misdemeanor, and failure to stay in one lane, a class C misdemeanor.

On Oct. 13, Martinez was driving a bus from Lincoln Elementary School in Layton to a school event in Provo. There were 66 children plus teachers and adult supervisors on board.

As the bus traveled south on I-15, one parent told prosecutors the bus "swayed and drifted onto the shoulder of the freeway" and "straddled the line between the fast lane and the carpool lane, coming close to hitting other cars in traffic," according to charging documents.

A second adult on the bus noticed the same thing and called 911 while on the bus.

"I don't get scared very easy, but my heart is pounding," the woman told a 911 dispatcher.


I don't get scared very easy, but my heart is pounding.

–Woman on bus to 911 dispatcher


A Utah Highway Patrol trooper who spotted the bus near 11000 South and followed it to 12300 South also noted that the bus "drifted back and forth several times over the double white lines and straddle two lanes," the charges state.

When troopers stopped the bus to talk to Martinez, they said she "seemed confused" while a field sobriety test was administered.

"Martinez showed several signs of impairment," the charges state.

In her purse, investigators found pill bottles for Clonidine, Cyclobenzaprine, Xanax and Meloxicam. Toxicology tests showed "the presence of Clonidine and (Xanax) in amounts exceeding the upper range of the recommended daily dosage for those substances," according to charging documents.

But the original blood tests were inconclusive, according to court documents filed by Martinez late last year.

"(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," her petition states.


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.

–Petition from Lycia Kae Martinez


The Utah Highway Patrol, however, later submitted additional evidence to the Salt Lake County District Attorney's Office.

On Nov. 6, Martinez's driver's license was suspended for six months, according to court documents. Martinez filed a petition for judicial review of her license suspension.

In 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.

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Pat Reavy

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