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Westal John Maine, age 74, of Pequot Lakes, Minn., was sentenced in Cass County District for violating Minnesota Statute 169.443 which prohibits the movement of a school bus after children are unloaded without first visually determining that all children are a safe distance from the bus.

Maine was the driver of a school bus which ran over and killed six-year-old Evan Lee Lindquist just after dropping him off at his appointed stop on March 22, 2010, near the City of Pine River.[[In-content Ad]]Ninth Judicial District Court Judge David Ten Eyck imposed a sentence of 10 days in the Cass County jail and a fine of $135 for the misdemeanor offense. All of the jail time was suspended for a period of one year provided Maine complies with multiple conditions. Included in those conditions is a requirement for Maine to participate in a speaking engagement with area bus drivers in an effort to educate them and stress the importance of school bus operator safety. He was also ordered to write a letter to the family of the deceased child explaining what occurred at the time of the accident. Finally, he was ordered to participate in victim-offender mediation, if the family of the victim requests such mediation.

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