The office of Bronx District Attorney Robert Johnson has completed its investigation of the deadly 2013 Metro-North crash and decided not to file charges.
Four people died and 70 were injured when the speeding train jumped the tracks in the Bronx on Dec. 1. 2013. The sleep-deprived engineer, William Rockefeller, had nodded off at the controls just before the train careened through the 30 mile-per-hour curve traveling 82 mph.
An investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board found that his sleepiness was due to a combination of an undiagnosed case of sleep apnea and a drastic shift in his work schedule.
The safety agency said the railroad’s lack of a policy to screen engineers for sleep disorders also contributed to the accident.
In a statement, Rockefeller's attorney, Jeffery Chartier, said, "I want to commend the DA's office for their thorough investigation and coming to the same conclusion as the NTSB that this is a tragic accident with no criminality on the part of Mr. Rockefeller. I hope this brings some closure to Mr. Rockefeller and the others affected by this tragedy."
The safety agency also said a high-tech system that would have automatically triggered the brakes of the speeding train would have prevented the accident had it been installed.
NY1 learned of the Bronx D.A.’s decision not to file charges as investigators continue sifting through the wreckage of an Amtrak derailment in Philadelphia Tuesday night that killed eight passengers.
Like in the Metro-North derailment, the doomed Amtrak train was traveling well beyond the speed limit through a curve – 106 mph, double the posted limit of 50 mph, the NTSB said.
The NTSB also said that the installation of a Positive Train Control system would have prevented the Philadelphia tragedy. Amtrak officials said Thursday the system will be fully installed in the Northeast Corridor by the end of the year.