Bond set, electronic monitoring ordered for Raleigh Christmas parade driver

For the first time since his charges were elevated from a misdemeanor to a felony, the driver who lost control of his truck and struck and killed an 11-year-old girl in the Raleigh Christmas parade returned to court Wednesday.

Landen Glass, wearing a navy blue suit, appeared in court to set the conditions of his release on the new manslaughter charge.

Judge Keith Gregory set Glass’ secured bond at $250,000. Gregory also required that Glass have electronic monitoring and is banned from driving in North Carolina without being properly licensed. He also must drive a vehicle that has been properly inspected.

Gregory also ordered Glass to take an immediate drug test for illegal substances. If Glass tests positive, his bond will be doubled.

Trey Brooks, the father of Hailey Brooks, the girl who was killed, spoke after court was adjourned on Wednesday.

“We went to the parade as a family of five as a tradition for our family. We went home that day as a family of four,” Trey Brooks said.

“We just want to let people know who Hailey was. As a father, as her parents we can’t really put into words the individual she was. She was a beautiful life. She was kind and caring brilliant and beautiful. She was a free spirit who yearned to be around people.”

Trey Brooks also called for “meaningful safety changes” and announced the creation of a foundation called “Shine Like Hailey.”

He described his daughter as someone who “loved to give a big hug” and said if she were still alive “she would hate the pain and suffering so many people have gone through.”

Landen Glass in court

In court, Glass’ attorney Robert Smith said his client had made several long-distance trips to New York in the truck involved in the parade without any incidents.

Two of Glass’ friends were in the truck during the parade, Smith said. One honked an air horn, another shouted for people to move and Glass continued to press down on the brakes.

“There is every indication this 20 yr old man will come back for these charges,” Smith said, and asked for Glass’ bond to be set between $15,000-$50,000.

Smith said he has over 50 letters attesting to Glass’ character.

Glass lives at home with his parents and spends time caring for his grandmother in Lynchburg, Virginia.

“After high school, he started working with his dad Chris at his HVAC company,” Smith said. He now works for W&M sales and service.

“Landen is so sorry for what happened. He’s haunted by what happened. He will be haunted by those events for the rest of his life. He tried desperately to avoid what happened that day. He did everything he could to stop that truck that day but he just couldn’t” Smith said.

Smith also claimed Glass’ truck has not been investigated, and said the lift kit was on Glass’ truck when he bought it. He alleged there were not “significant modifications to that truck.”

Smith also said he can’t draw the line of logic between the truck being inspected and the brake issues being caught.

“It would be negligent and possibly unconscionable to not take into account the inspection,” Gregory said.

“If there had been an inspection, if there had been an emergency break, this might not have happened.”

A truck not in ‘proper order’

Robert Taylor, the prosecutor, said Smith denied that Glass did everything possible to prevent what happened at the Raleigh Christmas Parade.

“That’s wrong. What he did not do is check that his truck was in proper order,” Taylor said.

Taylor said Glass was tasked with pulling a float with the youngest girls in the parade, and claimed Glass’ brakes worked. But one of the passengers in the truck during the parade told law enforcement that Glass did not have an emergency brake on his truck.

When asked why Glass didn’t deploy the emergency brake, the passenger told officers, “Because he didn’t have one,” Taylor said.

“There were zero signs of brake failure,” Taylor said in court. He also said further testing will be done on the vehicle.

Taylor alleged that Glass works on car safety systems at W&M, even though he is not certified to do so. He also said that during an interview with police, Glass said he had attempted to replace his own brake fluid and flush his brake lines six months before the parade.

Taylor said he pulled traffic cam video from across the city the morning of the police, and Glass had run a red light.

Taylor said he reviewed Glass’s driving record, which included Glass not having his car inspected, and noted that Glass was previously ordered to take a driver safety course in Virginia and initially refused to attend.

“It doesn’t matter what he’s driving, he just doesn’t care,” Taylor said. “He does not care. He didn’t care when he drove down here to drive in this parade” He has apparent disregard to comply with any safety statutes.”

Taylor alleged Glass avoided getting his truck inspected because he knew it would not pass inspection and once those safety changes were made “it wouldn’t look cool anymore.”

Courtroom filled with Brooks and Glass families

The courtroom Wednesday slowly filled up with family and friends for both the Glass and Brooks families. Instead of the typical sea of navy suits and black overcoats, the pews were peppered with red dance team sweatshirts, teal hoodies and Princess pink t-shirts, a visual reminder of Hailey Brooks’ youth.

As Hailey’s parents, April and Trey, entered the courtroom, family and friends cleared a spot for them in the front row and formed a momentary but noticeable human chain, placing their hands on the shoulders in front of them as they breathed together slowly and shakily.

April Brooks cried when the prosecutor talked about Hailey’s injuries as Trey Brooks put his hand on her back and consoled her.

A little girl in a pink sweatshirt, frayed white jeans and a pair of well-loved Nike sneakers stared straight ahead, her feet too short to touch the floor.

More than two dozen people, including Glass’ 11-year-old sister, convened in the courtroom, split fairly evenly between the Glass and Brooks families.

“Out here in the audience is friends and family who are here to support him today. What happen to Hailey Brooks at the parade was an utter heartbreak and tragedy. We can’t imagine the pain and sadness her family is experiencing right now,” Smith said in court Wednesday.

The Raleigh Christmas Parade tragedy

In November, Glass was driving a white pickup truck in the Raleigh Christmas parade when he lost control of the vehicle. Video footage from the parade shows Glass honking his horn as the truck traveled down Hillsborough Road at a low rate of speed. Despite the low speed, the vehicle struck 11-year-old Hailey Kaye Brooks, killing her.

Brooks was a member of the CC & Company Dance and was dancing with her troupe in the parade.

Hours later, Glass was charged with misdemeanor death by motor vehicle, careless and reckless driving, improper equipment, unsafe movement and carrying a firearm in a parade.

Since then, he has appeared in court once where the case was ultimately continued until March 29.

Last week, Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman announced that Glass, 20, would no longer be charged with misdemeanor death by motor vehicle, and instead would face a more severe charge: involuntary manslaughter, a Class F felony.

Freeman’s announcement came after a grand jury returned a true bill of indictment against Glass, stating that there is cause to increase the charges against him.

“The defendant unlawfully and wiIIfuIIy did drive a vehicle on Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC. highway, without decreasing his speed as necessary to avoid colliding with a person, operating vehicle that was equipped with brakes that were inadequate to control the movement of and to stop the vehicle, having improper equipment without inspection,” the indictment says.

It continues:

“This violation was the proximate cause of death.”

Glass is a former dancer from CC & Co. and danced from the time he was 13 until he was 18

He performed in the Raleigh Christmas Parade for years and his father had been a float driver for several years.

This is a developing story and will continue to update.