After a little over an hour of deliberations, the jury cleared Brandon Bostian, 38, of causing a disaster and involuntary murder.
The train was travelling from Washington to New York City on May 12, 2015. It rounded a curve at twice the speed limit, and became stuck in Philadelphia. The train stopped at Philadelphia’s 30th Street station 10 minutes prior and was headed north at the time the fatal derailment.
Bostian was described by his lawyer as a train enthusiast who had a perfect record of work until he was distracted from rocks being thrown in the area before the crash. Prosecutors claim he was recklessly negligent about the safety of his passengers.
Federal safety investigators found that Bostian had lost “situational awareness” while on the track. They thought he was going past an S curve and on a straightaway, when he accelerated from 65 mph up to 106mph. He was actually in the middle S-curve and exceeding the speed limit. Investigators did not find any evidence that he was impaired or using his phone at the time.
Amtrak paid $265 million to settle civil litigation with victims’ families and survivors in 2016. This was a new limit established by Congress following the crash. This criminal case has a unique history.
After the National Transportation and Safety Board’s findings were released, Philadelphia’s top prosecutor decided not to pursue criminal charges. After some families of victims pressed for charges, the state Attorney General’s Office took the case to trial.
Bostian decided not to testify on Thursday in his defense. CBS Philadelphia reported that he declined to give reasons for his absence from the courtroom.
The jury heard earlier in the week from the three witnesses called by the prosecution to testify. They were an Amtrak supervisor, an Amtrak officer, and the brother Robert Gildersleeve. He was one of eight Amtrak victims who died in the train derailment. CBS Philadelphia reported that the jury also heard audiotapes from 911 calls following the derailment.
When the judge announced that an alternate would be appointed, the jury was already beginning to weigh the charges on Friday morning. The jury began deliberations right away.
Common Pleas Judge Barbara McDermott stated that a juror whose sister had died on Thursday night arrived at court Friday to begin deliberations and then asked to be relieved.
The jury was required to determine whether Bostian intentionally accelerated, knowing the risks — which is the threshold for criminal negligence.
Amtrak installed a positive train control technology to stop or slow down a speeding train between Boston and Washington after the derailment.
Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvania Attorney General, released a statement after Friday’s verdict. He stated, “There is no doubt that the defendant’s excessive speed caused death and injury to his passengers.”
He stated that the goal of this lengthy legal process was to find justice for all victims and bring closure to their families. “The jury found his actions not criminal and we accept the verdict of the jury.”
Amtrak released a statement saying it respects the verdict of the jury and offered its sympathy to passengers, employees and their families for this horrible tragedy.
