Lawrence Doreson, the father of a 14-year-old Farmingdale High School student who was injured in a fatal bus crash in upstate New York in late September, has filed a lawsuit against the bus company and the driver.

Doreson accuses the bus company, Regency Transportation Ltd., and the driver, Lisa Schaffer, of negligence. The lawsuit maintains that both parties engaged in “reckless and careless acts” that led to the injury of the 40 students and the death of two adults Gina Pellettiere, 43, and Beatrice Ferrari, 77.

The bus was carrying members of the high school marching band when it crashed into a guardrail, causing it to flip into a ravine in Wawayanda, New York. A preliminary investigation indicated that the bus’s front tire may have failed, causing the accident to happen.

Under New York negligence laws, personal injury victims are allowed to hold accountable individuals who have injured them because they failed to exercise reasonable care. In order to show negligence, a plaintiff must show that the defendant, in this case, the bus driver, failed their duty of care by not following roadway laws, exercising caution while on the road, or other necessary behaviors. Duty of care also maintains that a property owner such as the transportation company must maintain their property in a way that ensures the safety of others.

Other critical elements of negligence include causation — the notion that a defendant's breach of duty is the proximate cause of injury and that a plaintiff suffered damages including injuries and other losses because of the breach of duty.

Doreson’s lawsuit alleges that the defendants failed in their duty to the students, adult passengers, and other motorists on the roadways.

The lawsuit accuses the bus driver of driving at excessive speeds which would eventually cause the bus to “veer off” the road. Doreson also targets the bus operating company for failing to maintain, inspect, and repair the vehicle. In failing to do so, his lawsuit maintains the bus was “unsafe, defective and/or hazardous condition.”

Following an investigation by the New York State Department of Transportation, Regency Transportation was found to have failed five out of 15 safety inspections during the state’s 2023 fiscal year.

Doreson says that because of the defendants’ negligence, his daughter suffered “severe and serious personal injuries to her mind and body,” with permanent “disability, disfigurement and loss of body function.”

The family’s attorney, ​​Andrew Finkelstein, shared, “This lawsuit is the first step in holding the bus company and their driver accountable for a crash that never should’ve happened and resulted in significant and serious injuries not just to my client, but to every passenger on that bus.”

The family's lawsuit is seeking damages including all medical expenses they have endured related to the bus accident.

Doreson’s lawsuit is the first to be filed after the bus accident but is not expected to be the last. Kimberley and Corey Ellis, the parents of another injured student, have also filed a notice of claim against the school district alleging negligence in hiring the transportation company. Their lawsuit is seeking over $10 million for their daughter’s injuries along with $2 million in damages for the parents.