LAC-MEGANTIC, Que. — Three railway employees charged in the Lac-Megantic train disaster will be back in court in March to have a date set for a preliminary hearing.
Of the three accused, only train engineer Tom Harding appeared in court in person Wednesday as the date was set.
READ MORE: Who is Tom Harding, engineer at centre of Lac-Megantic train explosion?
Harding, railway traffic controller Richard Labrie and Jean Demaitre, the manager of train operations, each face 47 counts of criminal negligence causing death – one for each victim of the July 2013 oil-train derailment in the Quebec town.
A conviction carries a maximum life sentence.
READ MORE: 3 people, rail company face charges in Lac-Megantic railway disaster
Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Canada, a subsidiary of the now-bankrupt Montreal Maine and Atlantic, faces the same charges as the three individuals.
The union and lawyers representing Harding and Labrie urged the Crown last year to drop the charges in light of findings by the Transportation Safety Board.
READ MORE: Lax safety measures, poor training led to fatal Lac-Mégantic rail disaster
Demaitre is not unionized.
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