Widow of man hit and killed by Poway school bus while walking his dogs sues the district↗
Rene Steiner was out walking his dogs in his Rancho Peñasquitos neighborhood on March 10, when a Poway Unified School District bus plowed into him, resulting in the man’s death 18 days later.
Cindy Steiner, Rene’s wife of 22 years, is now suing Poway Unified School District for what her attorneys say was a long-standing policy of encouraging their bus drivers to bypass heavily congested roads in favor of residential streets.
According to the lawsuit, obtained by Times of San Diego, it wasn’t just the policy that led to the fatal collision that killed Rene Steiner, but the reckless manner in which bus driver Richard Kraft was allegedly driving the empty school bus.
The collision occurred on the morning of March 10.
Rene Steiner, a retired UC San Diego nurse, was walking his dogs hours before he and his wife were to leave on a vacation to Malta.
As Steiner was walking on Paseo Montalban at its intersection with Via Cima Bella, a neighbor’s Ring camera captured images, according to the lawsuit, of the Poway Unified bus driver speeding down Via Cima Bella.
According to Steiner’s attorneys, the bus driver failed to make a complete stop at the intersection and turned right onto Paseo Montalban.
A still from the school bus dash cam captured an image of Steiner and his two dogs seconds before impact.
The bus struck Steiner, causing a traumatic brain injury that led to his death 18 days later. Steiner’s dogs, however, were not harmed.
“Our lawsuit is about getting justice for Rene and Cindy Steiner, but it’s also about changing Poway Unified policies that encourage bus drivers to take shortcuts through small neighborhood streets,” said attorney Domenic Martini from Singleton and Schreiber in a statement to Times of San Diego.
“Large vehicles belong on larger streets with better traffic control signals and more room to maneuver. These changes will make San Diego neighborhoods safer for everyone and help ensure this doesn’t happen again.”
According to the lawsuit, Poway Unified has a history of bus-related traffic complaints in the communities it serves.
“Since 2019, Poway Unified has documented bus-related incidents at 118 separate locations in the Rancho Peñasquitos and Sabre Springs neighborhoods,” states the complaint. “A number of those incidents occurred during midday, evening, and pre-dawn hours, including periods outside regular student transportation times.”
The bus driver, Richard Kraft, faces a misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter charge and was also fined for failing to yield to a pedestrian within a crosswalk. A spokesperson for the San Diego City Attorney’s Office says Kraft’s next court hearing is set for October 27, 2026.
A Poway Unified spokesperson said Kraft retired in June and is no longer employed by the district. The spokesperson declined to comment further due to pending litigation.
