Mills County, IA — June 6, 2025, Ralph Schultz and Perla Schultz were killed in a bus accident at about 4:20 p.m. on U.S. Route 34 southwest of Glenwood.
Authorities said a 2024 Volkswagen Tiguan was hit by an eastbound school bus after it turned onto the highway from 195th Street.
Hawaii residents Ralph Schultz, 62, and Perla Schultz, 66, who were in the SUV, died in the crash, according to authorities.
Bus driver Jeanette Henderson, 63, suffered minor injuries, authorities said, as did three passengers on the bus.
The bus reportedly was transporting the softball team from Saint Albert Catholic Schools in Council Bluffs.
Authorities have not released any additional information about the Mills County crash at this time.
Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman
When most people hear that an SUV was struck and two people lost their lives, their immediate question is probably the right one: How did this happen? The authorities say a school bus hit an SUV after the SUV turned onto U.S. Route 34 from 195th Street. But that’s about all we know so far. What matters now is figuring out whether that version of events tells the full story, or just one part of it.
That detail alone changes everything. If the SUV had fully merged onto Route 34 and was traveling in the same direction as the bus, then investigators need to figure out why the bus rear-ended it. Was the driver distracted? Was the bus following too closely? On the other hand, if the SUV had just entered the highway and was struck during the merge, we’d need to know how much time and space the bus driver had to react, and whether anything could have prevented the collision.
It’s not clear from the reports whether the bus was traveling at highway speed or had just come around a curve or over a hill. That matters because driver visibility and stopping distance both depend heavily on road design and conditions.
We know that the bus was transporting a softball team. What we don’t know is what kind of distractions might have existed in the cabin. Was the driver engaged in conversation with a coach or student? Did the bus have an event log or onboard camera that might clarify what the driver saw, or didn’t see, before the crash? These kinds of questions are routine in serious bus accidents, and they’re critical to determining accountability.
In my experience, evidence like dash cam footage, cell phone records, and engine control modules (the “black box” of a bus) often holds the key to what really happened. Without them, we’re just guessing.
Reports say the driver suffered only minor injuries, as did a few passengers. But when one vehicle walks away from a crash and the other leaves two people dead, it’s important to verify every detail through physical evidence, not assumptions. Bus drivers are professionals, and that means they’re held to a higher standard. Whether that standard was met in this case depends on what an independent investigation finds, not just what’s in the police report.
In previous cases I’ve handled, it wasn’t unusual for early reports to miss critical facts. One involved a commercial driver who claimed a passenger vehicle cut him off. The problem? Dash cam footage later showed the truck was speeding and weaving, and the car was already in its lane. Without that footage, the truth might’ve never come out.
We owe it to the families involved here to ensure that doesn’t happen again.
Key Takeaways
- It’s not yet clear whether the SUV had fully entered the highway or was still merging at the time of impact.
- Evidence like dash cam footage, cell phone records and black box data will be critical to understanding what happened.
- The bus driver’s actions — distraction, speed, following distance — should be examined through objective evidence, not just statements.
- Even though the SUV’s occupants were the ones killed, the burden still falls on investigators to establish fault through facts, not assumptions.
- An independent investigation is essential to make sure no detail is overlooked in determining who’s truly accountable.
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