Charges dismissed against Amtrak engineer in Philadelphia derailment
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}In this Aug. 21, 2007 photo, Amtrak assistant conductor, Brandon Bostian stands by as passengers board a train. (Huy Richard Mach/St. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)
A judge has dismissed criminal charges against the engineer in an Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia that killed eight people.
The decision came Tuesday after a preliminary hearing for 34-year-old Brandon Bostian.
Judge Thomas Gehret says that based on the evidence offered by prosecutors, he feels it is “more likely an accident than criminal negligence.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The site of the deadly derailment in May 2015. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)
The engineer was arrested in May after the family of one of the victims filed a private criminal complaint, and another judge overruled prosecutors who’d said there wasn’t enough evidence against him.
Bostian’s Washington-to-New York train tumbled from the tracks on May 12, 2015, after accelerating to 106 mph as it entered a 50-mph curve.
About 200 people were injured.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Federal safety investigators concluded Bostian lost his bearings while distracted by an incident with a nearby train.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.