ROCKLAND, Maine — The driver of a bus that struck and killed 12-year-old Brayden Callahan in November 2025, has obtained new attorneys as a court hearing is scheduled for next month.
Attorneys Jeremy Pratt of Camden and Caitlyn Smith of Bangor have been appointed by the court to represent Jeffrey Colburn, 65, of Camden who is charged with manslaughter in connection to the child’s death. The Public Defender Services has approved funds for the representation.
Colburn discharged last month his first lawyer, Jonathan Goodman of Portland.
Colburn has pleaded not guilty to the criminal charge. He was indicted Jan. 15 by a grand jury in connection to the Nov. 21 death.
A dispositional conference is scheduled for May 7 in the state court in Knox County. At that hearing, generally not done in public view, a judge will hear from both the defense and prosecution to see if a plea agreement can be reached.
In Maine, manslaughter is defined as: “Recklessly, or with criminal negligence, causes the death of another human being.” Recklessly is defined as when a person “consciously disregards a risk that their conduct will cause the death of another human being, and that this disregard is a gross deviation from the standard of care that a reasonable person would observe. Recklessly is a higher level of culpability than criminal negligence, which involves “failing to perceive a risk that a reasonable person would have perceived.”
The maximum sentence for manslaughter is 30 years in prison.
According to an accident report filed by Rockland police, the student was in the marked crosswalk on Nov. 21 when Colburn accelerated. The accident report said it appeared from the onboard bus video that Colburn was leaning far to the right and did not keep his eyes on the road. Colburn told police he did not see Callahan. The video also showed the front crossing arm was no longer deployed.
The boy’s parents filed a notice of claim Nov. 26 for $10 million against Regional School Unit 13 and Colburn. In Maine, a notice of claim must be filed before a lawsuit can be filed against a government entity.
Colburn is no longer employed by the district. The district has not said whether he was fired or resigned. That occurred before Dec. 3.
This story appears through a media partnership with Midcoast Villager.
