A man with a long history of dangerous driving pleaded not guilty Wednesday to driving under the influence and involuntary manslaughter in the death of eight Mexican day laborers in a vehicle crash in Florida, which also left at least 40 injured.
Bryan Maclean Howard, 41, remains jailed without bond for the accident Tuesday that occurred around 6:40 a.m., about 80 miles north of Orlando as day laborers were being taken to work at Cannon Farms in Dunnellon.
The Florida Highway Patrol reported that Howard was driving his 2001 Ford Ranger pickup truck when he crossed the center line on State Highway 40, a straight two-lane road that passes horse farms. The truck hit the side of the farm workers’ bus, causing it to go off the road, crash into a fence and a tree, and overturn.
Court documents detailing what substance Howard allegedly consumed remained sealed Wednesday.
He told a judge via teleconference from jail that he works independently as a painter and drywaller, had no dependents and had $700 in the bank and no other assets. He had his head bandaged and was wearing a prisoner’s robe. The judge denied him bail, assigned him a public defender and set his next court appearance for next month.
Howard’s parents did not respond to a phone message seeking comment Wednesday, and the Marion County public defender’s office declined to comment.
Marion County court records show Howard has had at least three vehicle accidents and numerous traffic tickets since 2006. He has had his license suspended at least three times, most recently in 2021 for accumulating too many tickets in one year. In 2013, he was convicted of grand theft. A year later, his probation was revoked after he tested positive for cocaine.
Meanwhile, Mexican consular authorities in Florida worked this Wednesday to support a community of day laborers after the accident.
Alicia Bárcena, Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Mexico, said last night on the social network X that the eight deceased people were in the United States on H-2A visas. This visa allows United States employers or agents who meet certain requirements to bring foreigners to the country to fill temporary employment positions in agriculture.
Florida farms employ more H-2A workers than any other state, about 50,000 a year, according to the Florida Fruit and Vegetable Association.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said Wednesday that 44 of the day laborers on the bus were “our countrymen, who went to work, hired by a Mexican-American businessman, with temporary work visas.” He added that he was not providing more information about the victims, out of consideration for his family.
The Mexican consulate in Orlando was providing support at the AdventHealth Ocala hospital, where many of the injured were taken. The Florida Highway Patrol said the names of those who died would be released after notifying next of kin.
Andres Sequera, director of mission and ministry for AdventHealth hospitals, said chaplains visited the injured workers and “they were in good spirits for what they have been through.”
“We were able to provide support, presence and prayer when asked,” he noted.
“Thank you to everyone who has reached out and offered condolences, help and prayers” for those injured in the crash, Cannon Farms said in a post on its Facebook page.
Cannon Farms is described as a family business that has farmed its land for more than 100 years. The company now focuses on peanuts and watermelons, which it ships to supermarkets throughout the United States and Canada. It is located about 13 kilometers away from the accident site.
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