{
  "id": 2944098,
  "title": "Court hears public at risk from bus driver for months before deadly crash",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/24/court-hears-public-at-risk-from-bus-driver-for-months-before-deadly",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-24T04:23:28.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "ABC News AU",
    "slug": "abc-news-au",
    "url": "https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-08-24/bus-company-exposed-public-to-risk-of-driver/107064942"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Ten people died and 25 were injured when Brett Andrew Button crashed a wedding bus at Greta in 2023. Linq Buslines and directors Christopher Fogg and Anthony Royle face sentencing for safety failures. The court heard that the company exposed the public to risk the entire time Button was employed. National Heavy Vehicle Regulator prosecutor Georgia Lewer emphasized that it would not have happened had Button not been employed. Button, 61, was driving the Linq Buslines coach when he crashed at a roundabout in June 2023. He admitted to being drug impaired and speeding at the time. In September 2024, Button received a 32-year sentence with a 24-year non-parole period. Families and survivors attended the sentencing hearing for heavy vehicle breaches, hoping to deliver victim impact statements. Linq Buslines pleaded guilty to breaching the National Heavy Vehicle Law between November 2022 and June 2023, facing a potential $2 million penalty. The company admitted to lacking policies for medical assessments, driving records, and driver references. Defence barrister Bruce Hodgkinson SC argued Button was fit for the role, citing a medical assessment and GP report. Linq Buslines directors Fogg and Royle pleaded guilty to breaching their duty of care during the six weeks leading up to the crash.",
  "summary": "A court is told a bus company exposed the public to continual risks by employing a driver who later crashed, killing 10 people and injuring 25 others.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}