The driver responsible for one of Australia’s deadliest road incidents, a wedding bus crash that killed ten people, has been sentenced to 32 years in prison.
Twenty-five people were injured when the coach overturned on June 11, 2023, on its way back from a celebration in New South Wales’ Hunter Valley wine area.
Brett Button, 59, was driving too fast and addicted to prescription opioids at the time of the incident.
Initially charged with manslaughter, he instead pleaded guilty to a series of reckless driving offenses after accepting a prosecution agreement.
Surviving passengers and family members of those who died came from all over the country to see Button punished, sobbing and hugging one another as the judge declared he could not be freed on parole until May 2048.
On the day of the incident, Button had taken a considerable dose of Tramadol, a potent medicine that can produce sleepiness, brain fog, and poor vision, to treat his chronic pain, but he claimed he was unaware he was impaired.
However, passengers told the court they were afraid of his erratic driving, and some had encouraged him to slow down.
Shortly later, he lost control of the bus at a roundabout, forcing it to flip over and slide along a guardrail.
It was transporting 35 passengers, and all but Button were hurt or murdered.
Two full days were spent listening to accounts from more than 30 of those affected in a hearing that the judge described as extraordinary in scope.
Several folks expressed their ongoing anguish and everyday physical agony.
Graeme McBride was seriously injured in the crash that killed his wife Nadene, his only child Kyah, 22, and her partner Kane Symons, 21.
Mr. McBride, who was crying, told the court that “my family tree has been cut down.”
“All I want is my old life back.
“I want to sleep on a dry pillow. I just want to lay down in a comfortable position without a shattered neck or heart.”
Nick Dinakis, who lost his partner Darcy Bulman that night, was also on the verge of death, suffering from a fractured neck, debris in his face “like shrapnel,” and a brain injury from which he is unlikely to recover.
“You’ve broken me physically; you’ve scarred my body, and worst of all, you’ve broken my heart and mind,” the woman, who is 30, claimed.
Button stood motionless as victims described how he orphaned children, turned couples into widows, and forced parents to bury adult children.
“Touching [your daughter’s] cold arm in a morgue is something a father can’t explain,” said Matthew Mullen, Rebecca’s father.
The court also heard that some of those affected were now too afraid to drive and too physically and mentally damaged to work again.
Button apologized for the first time, stating that he had struggled to communicate his regret and grief.
“I’ve tried to figure out the words to say I’m sorry, but how do you say you’re sorry for such a horrible tragic event that has ruined the lives of hundreds of people?” the judge asked him.
“I live with this every day, and I hate myself.”
In his 50-year experience, Judge Roy Ellis stated that he had never encountered a case that had caused so much “extraordinary devastation to so many individuals and families.”
“The court hopes that there will be some closure for at least some of you,” he remarked as he handed down his sentence.
Button was found guilty of 10 counts of dangerous driving resulting in death, nine counts of dangerous driving causing severe bodily harm, and 16 counts of causing bodily harm by angry driving.
The Hunter Valley in New South Wales is famous for its wines and native bushland, and it is also a popular wedding destination.
The tragedy stunned the nation and devastated the small provincial community of Singleton.
Six of those killed were locals: Nadene and Kyah McBride; Andrew, 35; Lynan Scott, 33; Tori Cowburn, 29; and Rebecca Mullen.
Kane Symons of Tasmania, Zach Bray, 29, of Byron Bay, Angus Craig, 28, of Queensland, and Bulman of Melbourne were also slain.
