In The News
Truck driver in June 25 6-person fatality wanted on drug charges in Wisconsin
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — The driver of a tractor-trailer that slammed into a line of vehicles stopped at a construction site June 25 killing six people was making his first run for Cool Runnings Express and what's more is wanted in Wisconsin.
Chattanooga Police Department spokesman Kyle Miller said the accident happened around 7:10 p.m. Interstate 75 northbound near the suburb of Ooltewah.
Police in Wisconsin suspected Benjamin Scott Brewer may have been selling drugs when they arrested him on one count of possession of a prescription drug in 2013, according to the Chattanooga Times Free Press.
Brewer was arrested in Janesville, Wisconsin, after he tried to fill a Florida prescription for a 28-day supply of oxycodone on April 11, 2013, according to a Janesville police incident report. The pharmacist thought the request was suspicious and called police, who said Brewer consented to a search.
Police found four pills of gabapentin (a pain and anti-seizure medication) without a prescription.
After Brewer missed his court date, a bench warrant was issued for his arrest; however, because the possession charge is a misdemeanor Brewer could not be extradited to Wisconsin.
If convicted of the drug charge, Brewer could face a fine of up to $500 and up to six months in jail. Meanwhile, the National Transportation Safety Board, in a briefing about its investigation of the accident, said Brewer was making his first trip for Cool Runnings Express.
NTSB officials said the truck Brewer was driving had deficiencies involving brakes and other components, but that those did not contribute to the crash.
NTSB Chief Investigator Pete Kotowski said the panel was also looking into whether Brewer suffered from fatigue.
The day before the accident, Brewer was cited for careless driving after a crash in Florida. He was to have undergone drug and alcohol tests after the crash, but did not.
According to a Florida Highway Patrol crash report, the 39-year-old Brewer had sideswiped a truck while attempting to pass on June 24 in Wildwood, Florida. No one was hurt in the incident.
Brewer had driven at least 400 miles before the wreck near Chattanooga, according to Chattanooga police, who would not say how many hours Brewer had been on the clock, citing the ongoing investigation into the crash.
Police have not charged Brewer in the accident, but Brewer will not be allowed to drive a truck until the crash investigation is closed.
According to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration information, Cool Runnings Express has six power units and nine drivers.
The company's last MC-150 report date March 13, 2015, shows the company drove 718,486 miles during the previous year.
The carrier has undergone only 14 inspections during the past 24 months and has not incurred enough inspections in any of the five public Compliance Safety Accountability BASIC categories to have a percentage rate.
The carrier's eight vehicle inspections have resulted in three out-of-service orders, which equates to 37.5 percent, a score somewhat skewed upward by the low number of inspections.
The national average is 20.7 percent.
This was the first accident in which one of the carrier's vehicles had been involved.
A knowledgeable source told The Trucker that under the program in place prior to the implementation of CSA, the FMCSA would have noticed the 37.5 percent vehicle OOS rate and might have intervened.
But with enforcement activities now based almost solely on CSA scores, the carrier "slipped under the radar."
Cool Runnings Express hauls meat, refrigerated food and fresh produce.
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