OCALA, Fla. – A person with a history of dangerous driving pleaded not guilty Wednesday to driving under the influence – involuntary manslaughter within the deaths of eight Mexican farm employees whose bus was struck by his pickup truck in central Florida. Dozens more were injured.
Bryan Maclean Howard, 41, stays jailed without bail for Tuesday's crash by which, in keeping with the Florida Highway Patrol, he drove his 2001 Ford pickup into the middle line on a two-lane road and sideswiped a farm employee bus, causing it to run off the road Road got here off, strike a tree and switch it over. Court documents detailing what substance Howard allegedly ingested remained sealed Wednesday afternoon.
He told a judge in a conference call from prison on Wednesday that he was a self-employed painter and drywall installer with $700 within the bank, no other assets and no dependents. Howard's head was bandaged and he was wearing protective gowns typically given to inmates on suicide watch. The judge denied bond, appointed a public defender and set his next court date for next month.
Howard's parents didn’t immediately reply to a phone message Wednesday searching for comment, and the Marion County public defender's office declined to comment.
Marion County court records show Howard has had not less than three accidents and diverse traffic tickets since 2006, including a citation for crossing the middle line. His license has been revoked not less than 3 times, most recently in 2021, for receiving too many citations in a single yr. In 2013 he was convicted of grand theft. A yr later, his probation was revoked after he tested positive for cocaine.
Meanwhile, the Mexican consulate was working Wednesday to help seasonal employees who were on their technique to harvest watermelons at Cannon Farms in Dunnellon when the accident occurred about 6:40 a.m. Tuesday, about 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Orlando.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Wednesday morning that there have been 44 Mexican farm employees on the bus who had been hired by a Mexican-American farmer to work on the watermelon farm on H-2A visas. According to the Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association, Florida farms employ about 50,000 H-2A employees every year, greater than another state.
A Mexican government statement later Wednesday said six of the injured were in serious condition and three others were in critical condition.
The Mexican Consulate in Orlando provided assistance at AdventHealth Ocala Hospital, where lots of the injured were taken. The Florida Highway Patrol said the names of those that died can be released after relatives were notified.
López Obrador said he wouldn’t provide further details to guard the employees' families. Coalition of Immokalee Workers co-founder Lucas Benitez said consular officials told them the deceased farm employees got here from not less than five different states in Mexico.
Andres Sequera, mission and pastoral care director for AdventHealth Hospitals, said chaplains were visiting the injured employees they usually were “in good spirits given what they've been through.”
“We have been able to provide support, presence and prayer when asked,” Sequera told reporters.
Cannon Farms, a family-run business that ships the melons to grocery stores across the U.S. and Canada, said it will remain closed until Wednesday.
“Thank you to everyone who expressed their condolences, help and prayers to the people injured in the accident,” Cannon Farms said in a Facebook post describing the accident Olvera Trucking Harvesting Corp. have occurred.
After the accident, nobody answered the phone at Olvera Trucking. The company recently hired a brief driver at $14.77 an hour to bus employees to the watermelon fields after which operate the harvesters.
A Labor Department document shows that Olvera also recently applied for 43 H-2A employees for this month's watermelon harvest at Cannon Farms, again at a base rate of $14.77 an hour, with the promise of housing and Transportation to and from the fields.
The H-2A program allows U.S. employers or agents who meet certain regulatory requirements to bring foreign nationals into the country to fill temporary agricultural jobs. Getting to and from the fields might be dangerous: Federal statistics show that vehicle accidents were the leading reason for occupational deaths amongst farmworkers in 2022, essentially the most recent yr available. They accounted for 81 of 171 deaths.
It was not immediately known whether Olivera's vehicle, which the highway patrol described as a “retired” school bus, had seat belts.
Two advocacy groups called for stronger laws and enforcement to guard farmworkers, while a GoFundMe campaign organized by the Farmworker Association of Florida to support accident victims and their families had raised about $20,000 of its $50,000 goal as of Tuesday evening.
“Farm workers are often forgotten, but it is important not to forget them, especially during such difficult times,” the post said.
Benitez said transportation laws for farm employees are sometimes not enforced.
“Although accidents will occur, protecting transportation workers through mandatory and enforceable safety regulations such as seat belts and safety inspections can reduce the number of injuries and deaths,” he said.
Spencer reported from Fort Lauderdale.
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