The teen charged with eight felony counts in connection with a 2008 crash that killed four classmates is on trial in Jacksonville, Fla.
Brandon Hodges, who was 15 at the time of the June 2008 crash, faces four counts of driving without a license causing a death; four counts of driving without a license causing bodily harm; and one count of careless driving.
Attorney Eric Block already has filed wrongful death lawsuits against Cooper Tire, Ford and other unnamed companies involving the crash on Interstate 295 in Jacksonville.
Three 15-year-olds and one 17-year-old were killed in the crash. Three 15-year-olds and one 16-year-old were injured. Hodges managed to steer the Explorer to an emergency lane before it overturned.
At the time of the accident, police said Hodges was driving the SUV without a license when the left rear tire’s tread separated and the vehicle flipped over, ejecting many of the nine passengers from the vehicle.
Hodges attorneys blame the SUV rollover on tread separation and a faulty tire, but prosecutors said the SUV was 240 pounds over its weight limit.
According to a local news report, the focus of the trial was not whether Hodges was driving without a license, but whether he should be held responsible for the deaths. If the judge finds Hodges guilty, the sentence could range from probation to juvenile detention.
