A Carmi man charged earlier this fall following a traffic stop involving a school bus returning from a High School Volleyball Super-Sectional game has had his most serious charge dismissed.
Court records show 70-year-old Stephan J. Heath appeared in Bond County Court on Monday, December 29th, where a driving under the influence charge against him was dismissed after toxicology results showed no presence of alcohol or other intoxicating substances. Heath had originally been charged with DUI, a Class A misdemeanor, and illegal stopping or standing in a roadway stemming from an incident on November 10th.
According to court documents, Heath pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of illegal stopping, a Class P offense, and was fined. The DUI charge was formally dismissed by the court. Bond was posted and applied, no jury trial was requested, and the case was closed following sentencing.
The incident occurred while Heath was driving a school bus carrying approximately 40 students home from the High School Volleyball Super-Sectional game in Shelbyville. Families became concerned after tracking the bus through location-sharing apps, which showed it traveling the wrong direction for an extended period and failing to correct its course.
The bus arrived back in Carmi around 2 a.m. on Tuesday, November 11th. School administrators traveled to Bond County to retrieve the bus and safely transport the students home.