Prosecutors plan video depositions in Texas truck death case

SAN ANTONIO - U.S. prosecutors are planning video depositions of witnesses ahead of the trial of a man charged with driving a truck packed with illegal immigrants in Texas, where 10 people died from sweltering heat, court documents on Wednesday showed.

A pre-trial hearing for James Bradley Jr., 60, set for Thursday has been postponed. Bradley waived his right to the hearing and to consideration of bail, the documents showed.

Bradley, who could face the death penalty, told investigators he was unaware of the human cargo until he took a rest stop in San Antonio on Sunday.

Prosecutors said he knew what he was doing and acted with reckless disregard for human life.

Video depositions of people who were inside the truck are planned for Aug. 23 and will likely be the first time survivors tell a court what happened during the deadly incident.

The case brought new attention to the dangers of human trafficking as U.S. President Donald Trump's administration pledges to crack down on illegal immigration.

At least 100 illegal immigrants, mainly from Mexico and Guatemala, were crammed into the back of the truck after crossing the U.S. border, investigators said.

Many fled the scene when Bradley opened the trailer doors outside a Walmart store in San Antonio.

Among the 39 immigrants found at the scene, 10 have died, 22 were in hospitals and seven have been released and were being questioned, U.S. immigration officials said.

Some survivors are seeking to offer testimony in exchange for consideration of visas that would allow them to stay in the country, an attorney representing the Guatemalan Consulate in Houston said.

U.S. authorities granted temporary visas for immigrants who provided testimony in what is considered the worst illegal immigrant-smuggling case in U.S. history, when 19 people died after traveling in an 18-wheeler truck through Victoria, Texas, in 2003.

No decision has been made on whether such an offer would be extended in this case, a U.S. Homeland Security investigator said.

Florida motor vehicle records indicate the state disqualified Bradley's license allowing him to drive a commercial vehicle such as a truck on April 12, after he failed to file required medical information.

While the records did not specify the reason, Bradley recently had his right leg amputated, according to Darnisha Rose, who said she is his fiancee.

Prosecutors and defense attorneys were not immediately available for comment.

(Reporting by Jon Herskovitz in Austin, Texas and Jim Forsyth in San Antonio; Additional reporting by Letitia Stein in Tampa, Fla.; Editing by Peter Cooney)