The Willis family, who found musical fame years after a van crash killed their family members, will discuss the tragedy that helped expose Illinois corruption in their reality TV series that premiered Tuesday.
The first episode of the show addressed the crash, said TLC spokeswoman Whitney Bell. The Rev. Duane “Scott” and Janet Willis, who survived the 1994 crash, will not appear in the 13-episode series, Bell said.
In November 1994, Scott and Janet Willis were traveling with six of their nine children on Interstate 94 south of Milwaukee when their minivan struck a piece of debris that had fallen off a truck. The minivan burst into flames, and the children died. Their son Toby, the father of the 12 band members featured in the new show, was not in the van.
The driver of the truck was found to have illegally obtained his commercial driver’s license by bribing a worker under then-Illinois Secretary of State George Ryan, who went on to become Illinois governor. Ryan, who was convicted in 2006 on racketeering and fraud charges stemming from the scandal.
