No charges in SC train ride crash that killed boy

COLUMBIA, S.C. – Authorities say no one will be charged in the death of a 6-year-old boy who was killed when a children's train ride crashed in South Carolina.

A report by county officials blamed the March 19 crash on excessive speed. The report said the train was going nearly three times faster than recommended when it rolled off the tracks into a ditch, killing Benji Easler and injuring 28 others.

Tony Fisher, the director of Spartanburg's Public Safety Department, said Tuesday that prosecutors decided not to bring criminal charges after reviewing the crash and the report.

A spokesman for the boy's father, church pastor Dwight Easler, had said Monday that the family was told no one would be charged.

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Kinnard can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/MegKinnardAP .