Hunter Valley Bus Driver Brett Button to Appeal 32-Year Sentence Over Fatal Wedding Crash

newy.com.au – The driver at the centre of the 2023 Hunter Valley wedding bus tragedy, Brett Andrew Button, is seeking to appeal the length of his 32-year prison sentence, with a full hearing set for 3 October 2025 in the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal.

Button, now 60, was sentenced in September 2024 after pleading guilty to 10 counts of dangerous driving occasioning death and a range of additional charges related to the crash that killed 10 people and injured 25 others near Greta on 11 June 2023. He is not appealing his convictions, but rather claims the sentence – which carries a 24-year non-parole period – is allegedly “manifestly excessive”.

In a brief mention before the appeal court on 3 July 2025, Button’s legal team confirmed the application is based on three main grounds. These include an argument that the sentencing judge erred in concluding Button was knowingly under the influence of Tramadol at the time of the crash, allegedly misinterpreted technical evidence about the bus’s tipping speed threshold, and imposed a sentence that Button’s lawyers argue was disproportionate to the offence.

Prosecutors have indicated they will oppose the appeal and are expected to rely on extensive victim impact statements presented during sentencing to reinforce the seriousness of the case. The court previously heard harrowing accounts from families of the deceased and injured survivors over a three-day hearing in 2024.

Button, who was remanded in custody following his guilty pleas in May 2024, had earlier told the court he was “truly sorry” and expressed deep remorse for what had occurred. Evidence during sentencing revealed he had consumed a high quantity of Tramadol prior to driving the bus and had a known history of opioid dependence.

The upcoming appeal hearing in October is expected to last around two hours. It will be watched closely by victims’ families and the wider community, as legal proceedings surrounding one of Australia’s worst road tragedies continue to unfold.