The truck driver accused of causing the chain reaction crash that killed three Tusky Valley band members on a charter bus and three chaperones in a separate SUV is having his trial delayed.

Instead of starting next week, the trial for 61-year-old Jacob McDonald, of Zanesville, is now set to begin in May in Licking County Common Pleas Court.

McDonald’s attorney requested the delay, apparently to bring in an expert witness to refute the state’s argument that McDonald was on his cell phone around the time of the crash.

It happened on I-70 east of Columbus in November 2023.

McDonald pleaded not guilty in July to the charges that include six counts of vehicular manslaughter, nine counts of vehicular assault, and 11 counts of assault.

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