The man accused of killing at least eight people in a bus crash on a Florida highway, told investigators he had smoked marijuana oil the night before and was in another crash three days earlier, according to an arrest report. Bryan Maclean Howard was charged with eight counts of involuntary manslaughter after authorities said his pickup truck hit a bus and caused it to run off the road Tuesday morning.
According to a Florida Highway Patrol arrest report, Howard told an investigator he was hanging out with a friend who had a medical marijuana card Monday night and smoking marijuana oil with him. Before bed, Howard said he also took prescription medication.
On Tuesday, Howard left his parents’ house around 6:30 a.m. to go to a methadone clinic in Ocala, Fla., to treat a chipped vertebra in his back, according to the arrest report.
Howard said he was driving carefully because he crashed his mother’s car into a tree three days earlier while trying to avoid an animal running in front of him, according to the report.
Howard’s eyes were bloodshot and watery during the highway patrol interview and his speech was thick and slurred, according to the report. After Howard’s arrest Tuesday afternoon, a breathalyzer test revealed he had a blood alcohol level of 0.000 percent.
A judge ordered Howard held without bail during a virtual court appearance Wednesday morning. His next court appearance is scheduled for June.
Reuters/Octavio Jones