CAMBRIDGE, Ohio – Former Martins Ferry City Schools bus driver Ronald D. Irvin Vah Jr. was released from jail April 9 after serving ten days in jail after being found guilty of physical control, according to Cambridge Municipal Court officials.
Vah, 59, of Martins Ferry, Ohio, was arrested August 26, 2024 and charged with OVI (operating a vehicle under the influence of drugs or alcohol), implied consent to a chemical test, physical control, and endangering children while driving a Martins Ferry City Schools bus.
Vah reportedly was driving a bus carrying Martins Ferry City Schools students and coaches to a volleyball game in Cambridge. A police report details the statement of a Martins Ferry coach telling police Vah was driving “really bad” and that that she and two other coaches witnessed Vah allegedly almost hit other cars with the bus in traffic on Interstate 70 in St. Clairsville.
Vah’s case came to a conclusion on March 21 in Cambridge Municipal Court when he reached a plea agreement in which the OVI and endangering children charges were dismissed and he was found guilty of physical control.
In Ohio, a “physical control” charge, as defined in Ohio Revised Code 4511.194, means being in the driver’s seat of a vehicle with the keys or ignition device in reach while under the influence, even if the vehicle isn’t running or being driven, and is a first-degree misdemeanor.
The online court disposition notes show Vah was also ordered to submit to random drug testing, not use alcohol or non-prescription drugs and participate in substance abuse treatment.
