No Charges In 2008 Fatal Boston Fire Truck Crash

December 10, 2009

WBUR Newsroom

No criminal charges will be filed in connection with a fire truck crash that killed a veteran Boston firefighter.

Lt. Kevin Kelley of Quincy died in January 2008 after a ladder truck he was riding in crashed into a building in Boston. (AP)

An 11-month investigation by Boston Police homicide detectives ended Thursday with the conclusion that no criminal charges will be filed in the January 2008 crash that claimed the life of Lt. Kevin Kelley.

Kelley, a 30-year veteran of the Boston Fire Department, was killed when the truck he was riding in while responding to a medical call barreled down a steep hill and slammed into building on Huntington Avenue in Mission Hill.

Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel Conley said investigators found that no person or entity bore criminal responsibility for the crash. But he said Ladder 26 had been operating for years with a compromised braking system because of poor maintenance.

Conley also said the firefighter who was driving had not been properly trained in how to use the truck's air brakes or emergency retarding system. He recommended that training and maintenance should be revised to avoid similar tragedies in the future.

This program aired on December 10, 2009. The audio for this program is not available.