KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A Chariton County, Missouri, judge Monday ruled that a number of civil cases filed in connection to the deadly Amtrak train derailment in Mendon, Missouri, in June can move forward.
In an order posted Monday, Judge Terry Tschannen said that after reviewing requests from various defendants to delay proceedings in several civil lawsuits, the lawsuits should proceed.
The defendants, which included MS Contracting LLC, the operator of a dump truck that was on the railroad crossing while the Amtrak train approached, argued for the delay, saying the National Transportation Safety Board had yet to issue its findings.
Judge Tschannen said that discovery associated with the civil lawsuits could also be beyond the scope of the NTSB’s investigation.
In Monday’s ruling, the judge also consolidated the pre-trial discovery process of several civil suits filed in connection with the crash.
In addition to civil lawsuits filed in Missouri court, several cases are also pending in federal court.
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