A jail term of over three decades handed to a driver who killed 10 people in a “horrendous” wedding bus crash in the Hunter Valley was “not manifestly excessive” and his appeal has been dismissed.
Bus driver Brett Button, 58, was behind the wheel of a bus when it flipped on Wine Country Drive near Greta in NSW on the way back from a wedding reception on June 11, 2023.
More than two dozen people were also injured in the crash.
Button was sentenced to 32 years behind bars with a non-parole period of 24 years last year, however, he launched a fight against his sentence.
In the Supreme Court of Sydney on Friday, Button’s appeal was dismissed, with Justices Julie Ward, Ian Harrison and Natalie Adams on Friday finding the jail term sentence was “not manifestly excessive”.
The sentence, they said, took into account denunciation and,recognition of the harm done to the victims and the community in the “horrendous crash”.
“As the respondent points out, the direct impact of Mr Button’s offending extends to those involved in the wedding and those who attended the crash scene but also has had an impact (through the loss of so many young lives) on the community more broadly,” they said.
In their opinion, Button had not proven his sentence was beyond the range of sentences properly available, nor that it was disproportionate to his offending.
Button’s appeal hinged on three grounds, including that the judge made mistakes finding he “drove knowing he was under the influence” of the opioid-based painkiller Tramadol.
He also submitted the sentencing judge erred in finding the tipping threshold for the bus was 31km/h.
And thirdly, that the aggregate sentence was manifestly excessive.
However, trial Judge Ellis found that Button knew he had taken “significantly in excess” of the recommended maximum limit of Tramadol when he drove the bus, and that he knew the drug could affect his ability to drive.
The court also did not accept that Judge Ellis was “fixated” on the speed of 31km/h.
“We have thus concluded that, to the extent that there was an erroneous factual finding that the highest recorded bus speed was nearly twice the estimated rollover tipping point speed of 31km/h, it was not a material error,” their honours said.
In an earlier appeal hearing Button’s lawyer, Paul Rosser KC, argued his client’s sentence was excessive.
“We submit that the 32 years for a single act, albeit with catastrophic consequences, is simply too much,” Mr Rosser said.
Crown Prosecutor Sally Dowling SC rejected the claim, stating 10 families had lost a family member.
Andrew Scott, 35, his wife Lynan Scott, 33, Nadene McBride, 52, her daughter Kyah McBride, 22, and her partner, Kane Symons, 21, Darcy Bulman, 30, Rebecca Mullen, 26, Zachary Bray, 29, Tori Cowburn, 29, and Angus Craig, 28, were all killed in the crash.
Button initially faced 10 counts of manslaughter, however; they were ultimately dropped after prosecutors agreed to a plea deal, much to the anger of the victims’ families.
He was sentenced over 10 counts of dangerous driving occasioning death, nine of dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, and 16 of drive motor vehicle furiously and cause bodily harm.
He will be eligible for parole in 2048.
