Jury Hears Opening Statements In Trial Of Amtrak Engineer Brandon Bostian's Train Derailment Trial
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The trial for the former Amtrak engineer charged in the deadly derailment in Philadelphia's Port Richmond neighborhood got underway Friday.
It was a gut-wrenching day in court. The medical examiner's office described in excruciating detail the horrific injuries the victims suffered in the train derailment. The jury also heard from four police officers who were on the scene that fateful day and a passenger who survived.
The prosecution and defense gave opening statements on Friday, the first day of the involuntary manslaughter trial of former Amtrak engineer Brandon Bostian.
Next week, when you see the evidence and hear the testimony, "you'll find that Brandon Bostian is guilty of 8 counts of involuntary manslaughter, causing a catastrophe and 246 counts of recklessly endangering passengers and crew on that train," the lead prosecutor told the jury.
— Madeleine Wright (@MWrightReports) February 25, 2022
"My client was concussed," Robert Goggin, an attorney representing Bostian, said. "You'll see the pictures of that as that comes on. He has no memory of exactly what went on. He was injured, just like everybody else who was on that train."
The prosecution says that Bostian was distracted by radio chatter about somebody throwing rocks at a nearby SEPTA train when the Amtrak train he was operating ran off the tracks in May 2015.
The prosecutor says the operator of the SEPTA train that was under attack did his job properly and stopped the train, keeping his passengers safe, whereas Bostian failed to do the same.
The Amtrak passengers "were all hoping, depending, relying on that man right there, Brandon Bostian, to do his job, to get there safely from Philadelphia 30th St. station to New York Station" and he didn't do it, says senior deputy attorney Christopher Phillips.
— Madeleine Wright (@MWrightReports) February 25, 2022
Bostian, the state says, accelerated his train around a sharp curve at twice the speed limit, causing it to derail.
"Of course, the prosecution is going to make him sound disingenuous. That's their job," Goggin said.
The defense argued that the rock throwers are the ones responsible for the derailment, not Bostian.
They claim accidents only become crimes when someone consciously disregards the rules, for example, when you text and drive. But in this case, the defense says Bostian didn't intend to get distracted by the radio chatter.
Brandon Bostian's defense attorney is speaking now. He blames the people throwing rocks at @SEPTA trains near the 30th St. station for distracting Bostian while he was operating the @Amtrak train. "They shattered the hopes and dreams of a good and decent man," the attorney says.
— Madeleine Wright (@MWrightReports) February 25, 2022
"It was the fault of Amtrak for failing to take any precautions whatsoever knowing these rock throwers were out there, knowing that this train was heading right into the bedlam that was potentially occurring and doing nothing," Goggin said.
The defendant is charged with involuntary manslaughter, reckless endangerment and causing a catastrophe for his role in the crash in Philadelphia that left eight people dead and more than 200 others injured.
Bostian faces more than a lifetime in prison if convicted.