GNS In The News
Mom Wins: School Bus Bill Becoming LawJOHN MONK, News Columnist Lisa Strebler is a mom who made a difference. Today, at 2:15 p.m. at the State House, Gov. Jim Hodges will sign a law that will - largely as a result of her work -save lives of South Carolina children in years to come. It should be easy in the S.C. General Assembly to pass a law to save children's lives. But in the Legislature, good bills get squashed all the time. Special interests cry government interference. Officials have other priorities. This is the story of how Strebler, a nurse from Forest Acres, helped pass "Jacob's Law." It will force public and private schools and day care centers to use school buses to carry children instead of dangerous vans. In accidents, vans lack the protections of buses and become death traps. Jacob's Law began with a tragedy followed by a nightmare. The tragedy came July 12, 1994. That day, Lisa and Mike Strebler's son, Jacob, 6, died in a school van accident. Jacob was a boy full of life. He loved soccer and Notre Dame and more than anything, to swim. "Anything to do with water he loved," Lisa Strebler said. To this day, Lisa Strebler's favorite photo of Jacob is of him standing in a sprinkler, arms up in exuberance, a smile on his face - all while wearing his Sunday suit. Jacob was in a Heathwood Hall school van leaving summer camp going to a swimming pool. An 18-wheeler ran a red light and struck the van in the side. Eight other children were on board; Jacob was the only death. The Streblers hired Columbia lawyers Isadore Lourie, a former state senator, and Richard Gergel. Gergel learned a dirty little secret: day-care centers and private schools all over the nation use 15-passenger vans to transport children. When hit, these vans crumple like tin foil. Jacob was in such a van. These vans are so dangerous that federal law prohibits car dealers from selling such vans to schools for the transport of children. Under a legal loophole, schools can use the 15-passenger vans; they just can't buy them new. (Minivans used by families are different, and safer, vehicles.) That was the nightmare: Not only had the Streblers lost a child, they now learned Jacob's death could have been prevented. In fact, Pulliam Ford president Bob Pulliam, who had learned of the federal law, warned Heathwood Hall several times before the wreck that he shouldn't have sold the van to the school because it was an illegal sale. And engineer Charles Manning, who reconstructed the Challenger space disaster, studied Jacob's wreck. He concluded if Jacob had been in a school bus, he would have survived. School buses have many safety features, such as padded seats, a steel chassis and a wide wheel base. They are also usually bright yellow - a universal caution color to alert motorists. However, day-care centers and private schools buy the deadly 15-passenger vans to save money. They cost about $25,000 new. A school bus costs about $35,000. But school buses last far longer and, in the long run, may cost about the same. The Streblers were shocked. Always vigilant when it came to their children, they felt that, at the least, school officials should have told them Jacob wasn't fully protected. "They had usurped our function as parents," Lisa said. In mid-1997, the Streblers concluded their legal action. They received $1 million from the trucking company and a confidential settlement with Heathwood Hall and Pulliam Ford. With part of the money, they took out ads nationwide warning parents of the dangers of vans. Lisa Strebler began a speaking campaign on vans. She also set out to make S.C. law go further than federal law and make it illegal to carry kids in vans. Although she would be the most visible part of the campaign, she said her husband, Mike, was an immense help. "He is my best friend," she said, "my absolutely A Number One support, and my emotional support." In getting a law passed, connections are vital. Lisa Strebler located Scott Beck, an Aiken representative, who was concerned with school bus safety issues. In 1998, Beck introduced a bill to require schools and day-care centers to use school buses instead of vans. Day-care centers and Christian private schools lobbied against it. They said it was too expensive to sell their vans and buy school buses. Besides, they said, the proposal gave schools only two years to comply. The bill died. In January 1999, with the Legislature back in session, Lisa Strebler had a new ally: Rep. Joel Lourie, D-Richland, Isadore Lourie's son. Joel Lourie realized that to get the private schools and day-care centers to sign on, they would need a longer transition time than two years. This time would, in effect, give the schools immunity from civil damages during the transition. Behind the scenes, a struggle took place. The S.C. Trial Lawyers Association didn't want to give any immunity during a transition time. The schools insisted on seven years; Lisa wanted five. Finally, all agreed on six. Fate added to the urgency. In February 1999, a tow truck killed six children riding in a van in Marlboro County. A prominent Marlboro House Democrat, Doug Jennings, began to support the bill. Once a behind-the-scenes compromise was in place, Lourie began shepherding the bill through the General Assembly. Meanwhile, Lisa Strebler got Rep. Rick Quinn to support the bill. Quinn, R-Richland, the Republican majority leader, controls 60-odd votes. With little opposition, the bill navigated a maze of House and Senate committees. Each chamber then passed it. The bill's weakness is that it grants six years of immunity to schools. Its strength is that after mid2006, it plugs all loopholes. It is one of the nation's strongest school bus bills. Today, Gov. Hodges will sign the bill in a public ceremony. He is expected to praise the Streblers. Also on hand, besides the Streblers, will be those who originally fought the law. "Mr. and Mrs. Strebler have done a wonderful thing in focusing the spotlight on this problem," said Kelley Jones, a lobbyist for the day-care industry. Requiring everyone to buy buses "is the right thing to do. We just needed to have the time to do it," he said. Strebler said Jacob's death brought her family incredible pain. "But doing this work has assured that it is not wasted, that some good has come from such blinding grief." Already, the law has had impact. Private schools and day cares are converting to buses. After July 1, they must buy buses and not vans. However, they can continue with old vans until July 1, 2006. Heathwood Hall now uses buses. Joel Lourie said of the Streblers, "They are heroes. It would have been easy for them to just withdraw into their own sorrow. They had the courage to make things better so it doesn't happen to other peoples' children." Jacob's Law
Reach John Monk by e-mail at jmonk@thestate.com or by phone at (803) 771-8344. Copyright (c) 2000 The State Reprinted from The State newspaper |
