Records: Truck driver in Amtrak crash had tickets

CARSON CITY, Nev. – Records from the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles show the driver of a semi-truck that rammed into an Amtrak train received four speeding tickets since 2008, and three of them were for driving a school bus over the posted speed limit in California.

The Nevada Highway Patrol identified the driver Monday as 43-year-old Lawrence R. Valli, of Winnemuca. He was driving a truck owned by John Davis Trucking Co. when it crashed into a passenger car east of Reno on Friday, killing him and at least five people aboard the train.

National Transportation Board member Earl Weener says Valli was going "at a considerable speed" in a 70 mph zone. Federal investigators were examining the truck for details on the exact speed and its braking capacity.

Valli also received a speeding ticket on Sept. 22, 2009, in Alabama for exceeding the speed limit by 11-20 mph.