11-year-old recovering after Maple Valley bus stop crash; driver appears before judge



RENTON, Wash. -- Two of the boys hurt during the crash in Maple Valley on Thursday are still recovering at hospitals, including 11-year-old Will Aris.

Will’s right femur was broken and he also has a few bumps and bruises; he was being treated at Valley Medical Center in Renton.

“Will’s in this huge bed, this little tiny body in a huge bed, and it’s hard for any father to see,” said Will’s dad, Bob.

Will is one of seven other boys who were hurt after a 19-year-old driver careened his pickup truck off the road and crashed into a group of kids waiting at a school bus stop in Maple Valley on Thursday.

“He broke his femur, it was a pretty bad break,” Bob said of Will.

A tree finally stopped the truck but only after it crashed into more than a dozen kids.

Investigators think the driver, Tanner Sypole, may have had a seizure just before the crash. He was driving on a license that had been suspended for medical reasons, police said.

According to court records, he told police he was taking medication for epilepsy, and he thought his driver license wasn’t suspended any more. But he was wrong.

Police also said it appeared Sypole didn’t hit the brakes or try to stop before running into the kids.

Sypole has been released from jail on his own recognizance because he has no prior criminal history.

Will’s dad, Bob, said he is focusing on his son’s recovery and not the driver who put him in the hospital.

“He obviously made a terrible mistake and you hope that that kid grows from it,” he said.

Will’s favorite sport is soccer and even though his right leg is broken, Bob said he is staying positive and even trying to make people laugh.

“In typical Will fashion, he’s got a pretty dry sense of humor, he says, ‘I think soccer tryouts are going to be a bit rough this year, Mom,” Bob said.

The other boy seriously hurt in the crash is in stable condition at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.