Judge Mulls Evidence in Pennsylvania Train Derailment

A judge in McKean County, Pennsylvania, wants attorneys to submit written arguments August 14 before he determines whether to throw out some evidence against a railroad engineer whose train derailed and polluted a prized trout stream.

The attorney for 46-year-old Michael Seifert, of West Seneca, New York, says investigators illegally obtained his employment records from Virginia-based Norfolk Southern offices. The attorney says state investigators also obtained private medical information about Seifert without a search warrant or his permission.

Prosecutors say Seifert was under the influence of drugs and may have fallen asleep as the train sped down a steep grade in June 2006 near Gardeau. Some 42,000 gallons of sodium hydroxide spilled into the stream, killing thousands of fish.

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Information from: The Bradford Era