Multiple injuries are reported during an Amtrak crash of a northbound train in Port Richmond on Tuesday, May 12, 2015, in Philadelphia. Tom Gralish/Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS
Brandon Bastion enters the 9th district police station Thursday, May 18, 2017, in Philadelphia. Jessica Griffin/Philadelphia Inquirer/TNS
The Philadelphia Inquirer
PHILADELPHIA — A Philadelphia judge Tuesday reinstated all criminal charges against the engineer in the fatal 2015 Amtrak derailment, once again clearing the way for the long-contested case to be put before a jury.
The charges against Brandon Bostian had been thrown out last year after a Municipal Court judge ruled that there was not enough evidence to support more than 200 counts of reckless endangerment, eight counts of involuntary manslaughter, and one count of causing a catastrophe. The evidence, the judge said at the time, suggested the incident was an accident — not criminal.
But Common Pleas Judge Kathryn Streeter Lewis, without further explanation, said Tuesday that that decision was wrong. Her ruling instantly revives the criminal case against Bostian, who remains free on bail while living in Massachusetts.
Bostian was in court Tuesday and did not visibly react to the judge’s decision. His attorneys declined to comment while leaving the courtroom.
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