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Man charged with DUI manslaughter in accident that killed trash collection worker

By Staff | Nov 11, 2010

A Cape Coral man involved in a fatal traffic crash in April was picked on an arrest warrant Wednesday for DUI manslaughter.
Brian Gustavus Ross, 52, of 842 S.W. 47th St., was arrested and charged with one count each of DUI manslaughter and manslaughter, both felony charges, as well as DUI and DUI with property damage, both misdemeanors.
He remained at the Lee County Jail on $25,000 bond Thursday.
Connie Barron, spokeswoman for the Cape police, reported that Ross was picked up after a judge signed off on the warrant Wednesday. The CCPD had been awaiting test results to determine if Ross was impaired when he drove his vehicle into the back of a garbage truck, killing Lawrence Davis, 53, of Fort Myers.
“He was driving under the influence,” she said.
Barron could not report if the crash involved alcohol, drugs or both.
Ross could not be reached for comment Thursday.
He has a court date set for Dec. 13.
According to officials, Ross was driving a Toyota pickup truck south on Skyline Boulevard at about 6:30 a.m. April 12 when he struck a Waste Management trash collection truck in the 4100 block. The garbage truck was stopped on the side of the road and two employees were at the back of it.
Andres Soto, 42, of Lehigh Acres, and Davis, who was standing to the left rear side of the truck, were loading garbage. Officials stated that Davis was forced under the garbage truck in the accident, sustaining life-threatening injuries. Davis was airlifted to Lee Memorial Hospital, where he later died.
Soto was not injured in the crash, and Ross suffered minor injuries.
Waste Management of South Florida reported that Davis was a temporary employee who had worked for the company for several years. Hired through Labor Finder, Davis worked as an assistant on a rear load residential truck.
His family could not be reached for comment Thursday.
According to the crash report, the Waste Management truck was properly stopped in the outside southbound lane. Witnesses told police that Ross was traveling in the inside lane as he approached the back of the truck, but then changed lanes into the outside lane, not seeing the stopped garbage truck.