Man blames sleep deprivation for deadly Boone County crash

UPDATE: According to Boone County Assistant Prosecutor Roger Johnson, Brill claimed he was sleep deprived when he crashed into the school bus.

“Mr. Brill indicated he had been working and had worked a 16 hour shift and was on his way home from that shift at the time of the crash,” said Johnson. “He also said he had worked a total of 148 hours in the last two weeks.”

Dr. Pradeep Bollu, an expert in sleep medicine and neurology, said when people are already sleep deprived, like Brill claims, driving monotonous roads with little traffic becomes difficult.

“The pre-existing sleep deprivation would make it extremely difficult for the brain to pay attention to the load, to traffic conditions,” he said. “The brain gets overwhelmed, starts to become drowsy, and will go into sleep.

He said the consequences of driving on little sleep can vary, but could be serious.

“It can be as bad as killing yourself, your family, or killing someone else,” he said. “Whenever you feel like the sleepiness is going to overtake your alertness, you have to be responsible enough to pull over or let someone else drive for you instead of neglecting the impending sleep.”

He said recent studies have shown that Americans are sleeping less than they were 40 years ago, and that 1 to 2 percent of total motor vehicle crashes are related to sleepiness.

“All of these are telling us that when we deprive ourselves of the normal sleep need, you’re going to become sleepy,” Bollu said. “The monotonous long driving on highways is just a very good catalyst for sleep deprivation to manifest in the form of drowsiness and dozing off.”

Brill’s charge of second-degree murder had been amended down to first-degree involuntary manslaughter and second-degree assault in exchange for Brill pleading guilty to both counts.

While Johnson said he couldn’t talk specifics about the case since Brill still has to be sentenced, he said they worked closely with Simpson’s family and the other victims in the case to come to charges that satisfied all parties.

“The big thing in any criminal case is the process takes a long time and our hope is we can move toward some finality in the grieving process,” he said. “I think it is an important way to reach some closure and help with the grieving process.”

Brill faces up to 22 years in prison for both charges, but ultimately it’s up to Judge Jeff Harris. Brill’s sentencing date has not been set.

ABC 17 News reached out to Brill’s attorney for comment and we’re waiting to hear back.

ORIGINAL STORY: A man accused in the deadly 2017 crash that involved a Harrisburg school district teacher pleaded guilty in Boone County court Wednesday morning to involuntary manslaughter and assault.

According to public records, Brandon Brill, 27, of Columbia, waived his formal arraignment and entered a plea that included him being charged as a prior and persistent offender.

Brill was originally charged with second-degree murder in the death of Brian Simpson, who was killed on Route F on Sept. 28, 2017.

Simpson was a teacher and the cross-country coach at Harrisburg High School.

Investigators said Brill was in the wrong lane and swerved head-on into the school bus driven by Simpson. The school bus caught fire after the crash.

Five female students, also members of the school’s cross-country team, were on the bus. Their injuries ranged from minor to moderate following the crash.

Brill was flown to the hospital in serious condition after he was cut out of his truck.