Man arrested for manslaughter months after deadly crash on Highway 281

Hillari Taylor Ward, 35, was killed in the Aug. 1, 2022 crash

Brian Young is charged with manslaughter following a deadly crash on Highway 281 on Aug. 1, 2022. (BCSO/KSAT)

SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio man has been arrested for manslaughter six months after a crash that left a woman dead.

Brian Kendall Young, 50, was arrested Friday on the felony charge.

Recommended Videos



Police say Young was driving a U-Haul box truck southbound on Highway 281 on Aug. 1, 2022 when he struck a guardrail and rolled the vehicle in a grassy area off the highway.

Hillari Taylor Ward, 35, was the front-seat passenger in the truck. She died as a result of her injuries.

According to an arrest warrant affidavit, investigators at the scene found two empty bottles of prescription depressant medications that were prescribed to Young.

There were amphetamine/methamphetamine, benzodiazepine and opiates in Young’s blood and urine samples that were taken at the hospital where Young was treated after the crash, the affidavit stated.

Young initially told police that Ward was driving at the time of the crash, but a witness told police he witnessed the truck swerving on the road from Loop 1604 to the crash scene. The witness said he saw Young behind the wheel and he was eating while he was driving.

An accident was reported on southbound Highway 281 at Josephine on Monday, Aug. 1, 2022. (TXDOT)

About the Author:

Julie Moreno has worked in local television news for more than 25 years. She came to KSAT as a news producer in 2000. After producing thousands of newscasts, she transitioned to the digital team in 2015. She writes on a wide variety of topics from breaking news to trending stories and manages KSAT’s daily digital content strategy.