Franco's attorney asks for new trial
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Attorneys for Olga Franco asked a district court judge Thursday to either throw out her conviction in the fatal Cottonwood bus crash or give her a new trial.
During the hearing in Redwood Falls, Franco's attorney Manuel Guerrero said the jury wrongly convicted her last month in the February crash which killed four students.
The jury found that Franco was driving the van when it hit the school bus. Guerrero said the panel ignored substantial evidence that her boyfriend was the actual driver.
Guerrero said a "shoddy" state investigation of the crime hurt Franco's chances of winning her case.
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The prosecutor, Lyon County Attorney Rick Maes, said he accepts that there were two people in the van at the time of the accident. But he said even if the second person was the boyfriend, there is no evidence that he was driving.
Franco was found in the driver's seat with her foot pinned near the gas pedal. Her attorneys say the force of the crash propelled her from the passenger seat to the driver's side.
Judge David Peterson will issue a ruling on the motions later. Before the hearing started, Franco told reporters she still feels her legal situation will turn around.
She's scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 8.
