Police: Woman jumps from car after seeing spider, causes crash

Jessica Durando | USA TODAY

The Kosciusko County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a car crash involving a school bus and a "driverless" vehicle near Syracuse, Indiana, that left a 9-year-old boy injured.

The department says that the boy’s 35-year-old mother, Angela Kipp of Syracuse, had been backing the car out of her driveway on Sept. 18 when she discovered a spider on her shoulder and jumped out of the car while it was in reverse.

According to authorities, the boy climbed into the driver's seat as the car was in reverse and attempted to step on the brake but instead hit the gas, sending the Dodge Avenger into a passing Wawasee Corporation School bus. The boy was found lying outside the Dodge Avenger when police arrived.

The boy was transported to Goshen General Hospital in stable condition with minor head injuries. No children were on the bus, and its driver, Becky Dunithan, 62, of Syracuse, wasn’t injured, police said.