Teen driver was using Snapchat before school bus crash near Hibbing: charges

CHERRY TOWNSHIP, Minn. (FOX 9) - A teen driver is now facing two dozen criminal counts related to a school bus crash in September near Hibbing. The criminal complaint alleges she was using Snapchat shortly before running a stop sign and slamming into a school bus.

Hibbing school bus crash

The backstory: Troopers responded on the morning of Sept. 12, 2024 for the crash in Cherry Township, a small town just east of Hibbing.

At the time, troopers said a 19-year-old driver had run a stop sign and struck the bus. The driver, later identified as Svea Snickers, suffered serious injuries. Ten students and the bus driver were also transported to the hospital for treatment.

Teen driver charged

What we know: On Thursday, Snickers was charged with 24 counts, including 22 counts of criminal vehicular operation – one count for each person who was hurt on the bus.

The charges detail 22 victims on the bus, ranging from minor scratches to fractures, with the youngest victim listed as five years old.

What they're saying: According to the complaint, troopers were able to speak with Snickers about a week after the crash at her home. She told troopers she was going from her boyfriend's place back to her home prior to the crash. According to the charges, she admitted to using her phone while driving to send a "voice text" to a friend on Snapchat – before later saying it was a video message.

She claimed to have sent the video while on South Dublin Road, near the crash scene. But, troopers say a forensic search of her phone found that she had taken a Snapchat screenshot just seconds before 911 calls for the crash came in.

Along with the criminal vehicular operation charges, she also faces a charge for using a phone app while driving.