A Florida man with a laundry list of driving violations is now charged with eight counts of DUI manslaughter after a deadly bus crash Tuesday morning in Marion County, Fla.
Bryan Maclean Howard, 41, was arrested Tuesday after his pickup truck collided with a bus on State Road 40, killing eight people and injuring dozens of others on the outskirts of Dunnellon, according to Marion County jail records.
Howard’s 2001 Ford Ranger “made contact in a sideswipe type collision” with a 2010 International Bus that was transporting about 53 migrants to a farming company for work, according to Florida Highway Safety.
Marion County Jail
“Post collision, the bus traveled off the roadway, through a fence, and then overturned,” the Florida Highway Patrol wrote in a statement.
The highway patrol confirmed eight people died and about 40 people were taken to local medical facilities.
Newsweek reached out to the Florida Highway Patrol for further comment but did not hear back immediately.
Marion County Public School’s buses were used to transport injured people to the hospital.
No students were involved in the crash, according to the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.
Long list of driving violations
Howard has been previously convicted in 20 cases, including careless driving, driving without a license and leaving the scene of a crash, according to Marion County court records.
Court records show Howard was charged with being in the possession of alcohol while under 21 years of age in 2003.
He was not wearing a seat belt as a passenger later in the same year and then again twice as the driver, both in 2005.
There are two recorded accounts of Howard leaving the scene of a crash, once in 2006 and again later in 2019.
Court records show Howard was caught driving with an expired license twice. He drove with a suspended license four times.
He failed to stop at a red light twice, and Howard was charged three times for careless driving.
Howard also has a felony charge for grand theft larceny of stolen property.
Overall, Howard has paid over $4,350 for all of his charges, and he has spent a total of at least 61 days in prison.
Howard also was sued in 2021 over a crash that happened in 2018, which ended with the driver being hurt and their car damaged.
State Farm demanded $15,314 from Howard. A judge entered a default judgement of $15,936 plus interest. Howard paid $18,650 in July 2022.
‘Pray with us for the families’
Tuesday’s crash shut down the major thoroughfare.
The workers were headed to Cannon Farms in Dunnellon.
“We will be closed (Monday) out of respect to the losses and injuries endured early this morning in the accident that took place to the Olvera Trucking Harvesting Corp,” the company posted on Facebook. “Please pray with us for the families and the loved ones involved in this tragic accident. We appreciate your understanding at this difficult time.”
The identities of the deceased will be released pending next of kin notification, according to the Florida Highway Patrol.
Howard is set to go in front of a judge for his first appearance on Wednesday morning.
The Florida Highway Patrol is still investigating the crash.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.