Driver in fatal Jeep crash faces manslaughter charges

FARMINGTON, Mo. -- The driver of a Jeep that plunged off a cliff during a weekend celebration of a planned wedding, killing the groom's brother and another man, has been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter.

Authorities said Monday that Brock L. Busenbark, 22, of Columbia, Mo., also was charged with second-degree assault related to the men who were hurt in the crash off the 30-foot cliff about 2 a.m. Saturday near Farmington.

Geoffrey Francis, 26, of Farmington, and Benton Chandler, 25, of Fayette, Mo., died in the crash. Francis was the brother of the bridegroom, Daniel Francis, 22, who escaped with minor injuries.

The crash forced the postponement of the wedding, which had been set for later Saturday.

Another brother of the bridegroom, Gregory Francis, 25, also of Farmington, was the only survivor of the crash who remained hospitalized Monday.

His family asked St. Louis' Barnes-Jewish Hospital not to release information about his condition.

At least seven men were in the Jeep when Busenbark got lost on a dirt trail on a private farm and drove off the cliff, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said.

The crash happened just hours after the wedding party had attended a rehearsal dinner in Farmington. After the dinner, the groom and two of his brothers joined four of their friends for some trail riding on farmland owned by Busenbark's father.

"The boys have been doing these trail rides for years and years and years," said the bride's father, Mark Hardy. "Instead of going out to a night club and being out on the road late at night, they went to the farm."

Authorities said the criminal charges were based on the crash's recklessness. The vehicle did not have working headlights.