MOBILE, Ala. — A former Alabama Export Railroad locomotive engineer has been charged with reckless manslaughter in the Nov. 17, 2020, death of a Mississippi man who was killed when his track maintenance equipment was struck by the engineer’s train at Prichard, Ala., just outside Mobile.
The Associated Press reports that James Jeffery Elder, 49, of Spanish Fort, Ala., has been indicted by a Mobile County (Ala.) grand jury in the death of Dexter Scott of Laurel, Miss. Elder was released on $75,000 bail. He allegedly was using a personal electronic device while operating his train.
At the time of the incident, Elder was operating a Canadian National train for Alabama Export, a short line that provides switching services in the Mobile area and connects with several other carriers. Scott was a contract maintenance worker for Continental Rail Inc. Three other workers were injured in the collision. Elder subsequently lost his engineer’s certification and was fired by Alabama Export. [see “Engineer in fatal Alabama short line accident … ,” News Wire, June 15, 2022]
In a report issued in April 2022, the National Transportation Safety Board cited as
“probable cause” Elder’s “failure … to operate his train in accordance with restricted speed requirements and stop before colliding with the equipment because he was engaged in the prohibited use of a personal electronic device.”
The NTSB determined that Elder’s CN train was moving at 19 mph at the time of the collision and that the brakes were never applied. Cellphone records and the locomotive’s inward-facing video camera showed he was using his personal device when he entered the cab; while he partially covered the cab camera with his hat, investigators could see he was engaged in a video conversation through the trip, including at the moment of the collision.
Following the incident, Alabama Export made more than 25 managerial and operational changes, including updates to its safety plan to address on-track safety. The company also said it would no longer use contractors for track maintenance.
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