Truck driver arrested for causing 2016 bus crash that killed 13 near Palm Springs

Thursday, October 19, 2017

A fatal crash involving a tour bus and a semi-truck prompted a partial closure of the 10 Freeway north of Palm Springs on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016. (Chris Tarpening/KESQ)

INDIO, Calif. (KABC) -- The driver of a big-rig who allegedly caused a passenger bus crash that killed 13 people in 2016 near Palm Springs has been arrested in Georgia.

MORE: 13 dead, 31 injured after tour bus crashes into truck near Palm Springs

Authorities from a multi-agency fugitive task force said Bruce Guilford, 51, was taken into custody after being charged by the Riverside County District Attorney's office with 13 counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, 12 counts of felony reckless driving causing injury and 17 misdemeanor counts of reckless driving causing injury.
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Thirty-one other people were injured in the Oct. 23, 2016 crash on the 10 Freeway just outside of Palm Springs.

WATCH: Passenger speaks after 2016 Palm Springs bus crash
13 dead, 31 injured after tour bus crashes into truck near Palm Springs


Authorities said Guilford fell asleep in the westbound lane of the freeway after he stopped his truck amid a routine construction-related "traffic break" conducted by the California Highway Patrol, which halted all lanes of traffic temporarily.



When CHP officers reopened the lanes, Guilford remained stopped with the truck's parking brakes engaged, authorities said.
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A motor coach headed from Red Earth Casino in Thermal to Los Angeles crashed into the back of Guilford's stopped big-rig at 76 mph, killing 13 passengers and injuring 31.

The scene after a tour bus crashed with a semi-truck on Interstate 10 in Desert Hot Springs, near Palm Springs, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016.none
The scene after a tour bus crashed with a semi-truck on Interstate 10 in Desert Hot Springs, near Palm Springs, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016.none
The scene after a tour bus crashed with a semi-truck on Interstate 10 in Desert Hot Springs, near Palm Springs, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016.none
The scene after a tour bus crashed with a semi-truck on Interstate 10 in Desert Hot Springs, near Palm Springs, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016.none
The scene after a tour bus crashed with a semi-truck on Interstate 10 in Desert Hot Springs, near Palm Springs, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016.none
The scene after a tour bus crashed with a semi-truck on Interstate 10 in Desert Hot Springs, near Palm Springs, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016.none
The scene after a tour bus crashed with a semi-truck on Interstate 10 in Desert Hot Springs, near Palm Springs, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 23, 2016.none
The California Highway Patrol says passengers were killed when a tour bus and a semi-truck crashed on a highway in Southern California.none
The California Highway Patrol says passengers were killed when a tour bus and a semi-truck crashed on a highway in Southern California.none
The California Highway Patrol says passengers were killed when a tour bus and a semi-truck crashed on a highway in Southern California.none
The California Highway Patrol says passengers were killed when a tour bus and a semi-truck crashed on a highway in Southern California.none



It was later revealed by CHP investigators that Guilford had regularly violated maximum driving-time regulations by falsifying a travel log. Guilford had likely not slept in a extended period of time leading up to the accident, investigators said.
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