JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Eight months after a fiery crash on the Buckman Bridge, the Florida Highway Patrol traffic homicide report shows the truck driver who hit a disabled SUV with a Navy petty officer's wife and three children inside had failed a drug test for a previous employer and was fired when he refused to take a follow-up test.
Yakel Culclager, 36, and her three children -- 18-year-old Trequis Woods-Sims, 17-year-old Tradesia Woods-Sims and 6-year-old Tra'vieon Woods-Franklin -- were in an SUV with a broken drive shaft stranded on the bridge March 2 when it was struck from behind by a tractor-trailer. They were on their way to a doctor appointment.
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The FHP's 142-page report said that the big rig pushed the SUV for over 300 feet into the concrete barrier wall, causing the SUV's gas tank to rupture and ignite.
All four members of Navy Petty Officer Dexter Culclager's family died.
While the truck driver, Judson Humphries, 56, of Wyoming, had a valid commercial driver's license at the time of the crash, he had lied about having tested positive in a previous drug screening and being fired when he refused to take an unannounced follow-up test. He lost his commercial license to drive in Wyoming. His new employer in Jacksonville allowed him to start driving before a background check was completed.
The FHP found Humphries was negligent in failing to be able to stop for the vehicle in front of him and charged him with careless driving.
"(There are) multiple factors in regards to pre-trip, precrash information," said FHP Sgt. Dylan Bryan. "What the vehicles were doing prior to the collision, what type of driver actions were going on, in addition to the things that they may have been doing while driving, such as distracted driving, whether it's a cellphone issue, cellphone use, all of those are just sample indicators of things that we look for within our traffic crash investigations."
The family had recently relocated to Jacksonville's Westside from Pine Bluff, Arkansas, when Dexter Culclager took a job in the orthopedics department of Naval Hospital Jacksonville.
The report said Yakel called her husband to report they were broken down and that he heard the crash, some commotion and his daughter saying they couldn't get out of the vehicle.
Humphries told investigators he tried to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher and attempted to help get the victims out of the burning SUV.
"Unfortunately we had a loss of life with this crash, so our condolences and prayers go out to the friends and families of the victims," Bryan said.
On Monday, the State Attorney's Office completed its review of the crash report and said Humphries would not face criminal charges.
"This was not a criminal intent. It was not a malicious act by that person. This was just the circumstances where multiple vehicles came together," FHP Lt. Bylan Bryan said.
The family's attorney, Joe Camerlengo, issued a statement about the FHP report and state attorney's decision not to prosecute:
"The Culclager family is appreciative of the office of the State Attorney and the Florida Highway Patrol for their diligent investigation into this tragedy. While we respect their decision not to press criminal charges, we are grateful that their citation rightfully finds Mr. Humphries at fault for causing the fatal crash.
"We strongly believe that Mr. Humphries should not have been behind the wheel on that fateful day and he should never be allowed to drive a tractor-trailer again.
"Mr. Humphries continues to be an active commercial driver and remains a danger to other drivers and their families. There are additional details and facts that will come to light during the civil case regarding the safety failures of Mr. Humphries and the companies involved, but we cannot comment further at this time."
The Culclager family has filed a lawsuit against Humphries, Suntech Transportation Group of Jacksonville and Hobit Express of Wyoming claiming the driver was negligent, had a poor driving record, and both the trucking companies should have known of his "unfitness as a commercial driver."
Shortly after the crash, News4Jax spoke with Humphries, who said, "My mind's screwed up. I'm not doing good at all."
Humphries still has to appear in court on the careless driving citation.