Charter Bus Driver from Harpers Ferry Arrested for DUI While Driving HHS Teams from Morgantown

HEDGESVILLE, W.Va. — A charter bus driver driving Hedgesville High School football and cheerleading team members home from a game in Morgantown was charged with DUI.

Principal of Hedgesville High School Ron Lyons let parents know in a letter Saturday. The incident occurred early Saturday morning.

“The teams were traveling east through Allegany County, Maryland on I-68 on two buses chartered by Varsity Travel Company, when members of our coaching staff noticed the driver of the lead bus was driving erratically and at a high rate of speed. Coaches called law enforcement from the bus as they travelled through Allegany County. The trailing bus was able to signal the lead bus to stop at a Love’s Travel Center just east of Cumberland, Maryland. The Cumberland City Police Department met the buses at the Love’s Travel Center. After the buses were stopped safely at approximately 1:30 a.m., all members and coaches of the teams on the bus in question were safely removed from the situation. The Cumberland Police have charged the bus driver with driving under the influence of alcohol and have also cited him with numerous other traffic offenses.”

The students were consolidated onto the remaining bus and returned safely to Hedgesville High School.

64 year-old James Blair Currie of Harpers Ferry was later released on citations pending his trial at District Court according to MetroNews affiliate anchor Amanda Mangan.

He’s been charged with driving Under the Influence of Alcohol Per Se, Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol, Driving While Impaired by Alcohol, Reckless Driving, Negligent Driving, Numerous Counts of Driving While Under the Influence of Alcohol Per Se While Transporting a Minor, and Numerous Counts of Driving While Under the Influence of Alcohol While Transporting a Minor.