North Jersey school bus driver gets 14 years for driving drunk with 27 students on board

A Sussex County woman has been sentenced to 14 years in prison after driving more than two dozen kids on a school bus while drunk in 2022, the county prosecutor's office stated Tuesday.

Colleen Eutermarks, of Wantage, was sentenced last week nearly eight months after she was convicted on 27 counts of child endangerment — one for each student she transported while intoxicated. She was also forced by Superior Court Judge Michael Gaus to forfeit her commercial driver's license for life.

"The sentence of the court clearly held Ms. Eutermarks accountable for her terrible decision making," acting Sussex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray said. "It also sent a strong message that there are serious criminal consequences of operating a school bus while under the influence, which are far beyond the consequences of a driving while intoxicated charge."

Sussex County NJWant to preserve your woods? Online forum will focus on NJ woodland farm assessments

Eutermarks was arrested Jan. 28, 2022, after State Police officers saw her driving a school bus erratically on Route 565 in Frankford. Her blood alcohol content was 0.34, more than eight times the legal limit of 0.04 for a person operating a bus or other commercial vehicle, the prosecutor's office said.

A State Police investigation determined Eutermarks picked up 27 students from Wallkill Valley Regional High School and Franklin Elementary School the day of her arrest. Police found a partially consumed bottle of vodka in her purse, which was among the evidence presented during the two-week trial in October.