Toyota Repair: unable to shift, toyota rav 4, brake light switch

Question
I have a 1996 toyota rav 4 automatic with 200k miles-mostly highway.It has been dependable with very few problems. It is not letting me move the stick shift to engage the car. It ia an automatic,which requires the brake to be depressed,then push the button on the side of the shift(on the floor) ,then shift into gear. It is acting as though the brake is not depressed, therefore will not allow the shift to move. This happened once last year and I was able to wiggle the wire under the shift cover and it was fine and has been for a year. Now it has happened again and I can not get it to release. Is this an electrical problem or is it brake or shift problem ?

Answer
Oh it's electrical. ;)
Either the brake light switch isn't turning it on. Or the wiring is busted going back to the shifter. (Like in the console)

If the saftey switch under the cover of the console wont allow you to shift it, you'll have to pull the whole console out & check all your wiring & temrinals. Normally, a coke get's spilled down there & eats up the terminals/wiring.