Hunter Valley bus crash driver Brett Button appeals 32-year jail sentence
Brett Andrew Button is serving a non-parole period of 24 years over the crash in 2023 near the town of Greta.
He was driving guests from a wedding in the Hunter Valley vineyards to Singleton when the bus rolled and hit a guard rail.
Ten people died in the crash and 25 others were injured.
Button was originally charged with 10 counts of manslaughter, but a plea deal saw those charges downgraded to dangerous driving occasioning death.
He also pleaded guilty to dozens of charges relating to dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm, driving furiously and causing bodily harm to survivors.
The appeal was briefly mentioned in the Court of Criminal Appeal on Thursday morning, with Button's lawyers appearing on his behalf.
Court documents detail three grounds for his appeal, questioning the length of the sentence and two findings made by the sentencing Judge Roy Ellis:
The appeal will be heard on October 3 and is expected to take two hours.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
SBS Australia
a day ago
- SBS Australia
Two charged in spiritual blessing scams
Two charged in spiritual blessing scams Published 4 July 2025, 7:08 am Two people have been charged after allegedly targeting people of Asian background in spiritual blessing scams. New South Wales Police set up Strike Force Sentinel in April following reports the scams had been taking place across parts of Sydney since July 2023. The scammers are accused of exploiting the community's cultural fears before tricking them into handing over money and valuables.
News.com.au
2 days ago
- News.com.au
Two men found dead in home in Surry Hills, Sydney
The bodies of two men have been found inside a home in inner Sydney. Police were called to the property on Cleveland Street in Surry Hills at about 2pm on Thursday, following concerns for welfare. Officers discovered the body of one man inside the house and declared a crime scene. A second man's body was found in another room a short time later. Police say both men, believed to be in their 70s and 80s, are thought to have died at different times within the past month Their identities have not been confirmed. A 63-year-old woman living at the same address has spoken with detectives. Police are appealing for anyone with information to contact Surry Hills Police or Crime Stoppers.
ABC News
2 days ago
- ABC News
Wife of pilot Daniel Duggan criticises changes to visiting hours at NSW jail
Saffrine Duggan says her heart breaks every time she watches her children farewell their father, Daniel, at a jail in western New South Wales. For months, she and her six kids have made a weekly four-hour round trip to visit him at the Macquarie Correctional Centre at Wellington. He is awaiting extradition to the United States, accused of breaching arms trafficking laws. Mr Duggan, an Australian citizen and a former US Marines pilot, is accused of training Chinese pilots at a South African flying school in 2012. He denies the charges and his family is challenging the extradition order in the Federal Court. "It's been horrendous," Ms Duggan said. "Dan has been in prison for over 32 months and 19 of those months were in solitary confinement. It's been exhausting. "I'm just hanging in there. So is my husband. "They [our children] always do a heart with their fingers on their heart to their dad and that just breaks my heart every single week." Ms Duggan has roused her children early on Sunday mornings to drive to the jail for a few hours together as a family. She says that has become harder because face-to-face visits on Sundays are no longer permitted. "We were not individually notified. I have to go on a government booking system that allows me to book the visit," Ms Duggan said. "I set my alarm for 10 past 12 on Sunday night to wake up so I can make sure that I can [book] a visit with my husband with the kids. "[While doing that] we noticed that you're not able to visit on a Sunday anymore." Sunday visits have been replaced by meetings via audio-visual links (AVL) to allow more inmates to see family and friends. "A three-month trial has commenced at the prison, whereby in-person visits on Sundays have been replaced with AVL visits from 7am to 5pm, allowing up to 90 inmates a visit," a Corrective Services NSW spokesperson said. "The trial brings Macquarie Correctional Centre more in line with the rest of the state and will be reviewed with staff and inmates upon completion. "The trial is being conducted at the request of inmates, who are hoping to lift the burden on families to travel long distances to the prison." The spokesperson said in-person visits were still allowed at Macquarie Correctional Centre on Saturdays from 8am to 4pm. "Corrective Services NSW understands the importance of ensuring inmates maintain a connection to their family and friends and facilitates both in-person and video visits at all NSW correctional centres," the spokesperson said. Ms Duggan said she had been trying to limit the emotional toll of her husband's incarceration on their children by ensuring they did not miss out on extracurricular activities. "I'm forced to make a decision on a Saturday whether my kids get to visit their dad or whether they get to do sport," Ms Duggan said. "I just find it emotionally like another slap in the face. "I'm a big believer that sport is helping with their courage to keep going, to help with their emotions, to regulate their emotions." She said her family was only able to visit once every few weeks. "Having a hug from your child lets all of your pain go away for just that moment. Having AVL is not the answer." Ms Duggan said her husband had also been denied visits from friends and was only permitted to see immediate family or legal representatives. "We do not understand why. He has been before [but] that has been overturned," she said. She said they had written to the commissioner of Corrective Services NSW but had not received a response. Corrective Services NSW declined to answer the ABC's questions about the change.
