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NTSB to meet on cause of crash that killed 3 siblings

ROCHESTER, Ind. (AP) - The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a meeting next month to determine the probable cause of the 2018 crash that killed three siblings crossing a rural northern Indiana highway to reach their stopped school bus, the agency announced Tuesday.

The April 7 meeting in Washington, D.C., will investigate the Oct. 30, 2018, crash involving a pickup truck on two-lane Indiana 25 in Rochester. The crash killed 6-year-old twin brothers Xzavier and Mason Ingle, and their 9-year-old sister, Alivia Stahl. A fourth child, Maverik Lowe, 11, suffered critical injuries.

Alyssa Shepherd, 25, of Rochester was convicted in October of reckless homicide, criminal recklessness and passing a school bus, causing injury. Shepherd was sentenced to four years in prison, though she is appealing her convictions.

Authorities have said the students were waiting for the bus on the opposite side of the road. The school bus' red warning lights were active, and its stop arm was extended. After being signaled by the driver to cross, the four students entered the roadway and were struck by Shepherd's pickup truck.

At the time of her arrest, Shepherd told authorities she didn't realize that she was approaching a stopped school bus, despite the activated stop arm and flashing lights. Court documents show Shepherd told police she saw the lights but didn't recognize the vehicle as a school bus until the children were right in front of her.

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