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Another train hits somebody, who dies

The Globe reports an outbound Franklin Line train hit a trespasser around 12:30 a.m. in Norwood, several hours after an inbound Acela train struck and killed a trespasser in Sharon.

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Comments

What's with this 'trespasser' business? Isn't it 'people' who are being hit by trains? By definition, anyone standing on the tracks is a trespasser, so it adds nothing to the report.

Pesaturo said the man was trespassing

As opposed to what - having tea in his living room?

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As opposed to being in a place where he's allowed to be.
He was on the tracks between stations, and he wasn't a railroad employee, hence trespasser.

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The white elephant in the room: these people are suicide victims.

See that term there? Victim.

"Trespasser" makes it sound like we've got this pesky problem with misdemeanor crime. Not that we have a problem with people for whom society has failed to such a degree that they want to kill themselves.

I don't suppose you noticed that there's been a sudden outbreak of "trespassing" the last week or so? It's called copycatting.

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it's just for the record that a person was in an area that he wasn't supposed to be, and assumes there was signage saying as much, as stated by a LEO.

It's to prevent a liability issue, since you have the police report saying as much that the officer was aware the person was trespassing to be in the area he was in.

Same reason the police deal in homicides and not "murders". Murders are for the DA and court system to figure out.

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They're not always suicides. Some really are simple accidents (albiet due to ignorance or stupidtiy, but still) , people taking shortcuts, at some stations homeless "live" under the high level platforms (Porter Sq for instance), and even though they get used to the schedule, you never know when a train is coming. They even occassionally happen when someone tries to beat a train through a crossing.

What they all have in common, is that they are immensely traumatizing to train crews, and even passengers aboard the trains involved, or in the immediate area.

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Who says it was a suicide? I used to live in Norwood and people walk along the tracks between Windsor Gardens, Norwood Central and Norwood Depot all of the time. The term "Tresspasser" fits in this case, they didn't belong on the tracks. There are signs all over telling people not to walk on the tracks, yet people do it anyway hence the term trespasser.

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I agree with NotWhitey.

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Don't take it too bad. ;-)

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An employee of any of the companies that might have reason to do service work on the track/power lines/whatever along that section of travelway.

I'm not sure if there are any at-grade crossings between those two stops in Norwood, but if so, then he could have been a pedestrian struck at a crossing (not trespassing) since the exact location of the accident isn't listed.

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A person being within a crossing area with the gates down is trespassing.

And for the thread:
And the reason that press releases refer to "trespassers" is the intimation of fault. The typical headline "train hits person" or "train hits car" implies the train did something wrong, when in almost all cases, it is the person or car who was not supposed to be there. Of course, that is little comfort to the family of the deceased, but it does matter from a legal perspective.

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There are no at-grade crossings between Norwood Central and Windosr Gardens.

I grew up in Norwood and as was the decades long custom walked the tracks. I"m not talking crossing the tracks (I did that also), but choosing to walk the tree-lined railroad tracks. I did so back in the pre-walkman/Ipod days.

As there are slight curves in the track, you sometimes could not see more than 25 yards, but on a windless day you could hear the train at least 50-75 yards away. You could also feel the vibration of the oncoming train with your feet as the weight of the train slightly vibrated the ground.

Back in the 60's and 70's there also accidents. Mostly they were suicides, but also an occasional person who had drunk too much and passed out on the track.

Any death on the tracks is sad. I suspect that as we are seeing a cluster of these accidental deaths, that some desperate folks are viewing this as a quick and efficient way to deal with their pain.

I too have been struck by official use of the word "trespasser" in the MBTA's official response. Personally it rubs me the wrong way to speak of someone whose life is so sad that they arrive at suicide by train as a trespasser/

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as opposed to crossing the tracks within designated pedestrian crossings that exist at many MBCR stations

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I've been over this over and over, what could have happened. Probably had his headphones on, taking a short cut home, probably done it a million times....obviously wasn't paying attention. You don't have to insult the victim. Obviously he was trespassing, anybody on the tracks who doesn't work for the mbta is trespassing. People do it everyday. He paid the ultimate consequence for this decision you don't have to destroy his memory with your judgement for whatever family may be on here reading your heartless comments. What if he was your loved one? Would you want to see 'lol' and jokes?

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That these are more than just accidents :(

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a lot of the people who run and-or work for the public transportation department in this state just plain don't care who they hit and/or possibly kill.

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I highly doubt that. Talk to any engineer who was at the helm of a train that hit someone, and I think that person will tell you a different story.

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You can't just brake a massive train like that, they can take a fourth of a mile or more to come to a complete stop. They aren't cars, or even subway trains. These are serious machines, and the lack of respect people like you have for them are why stuff like this happens.

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Dear People,

Please stop walking on, near or about train tracks.

Thank you,

Trains

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Dear Train,

I'm in front of you ON PURPOSE.

Sorry,

Suicidal Person

(no, I'm not actually suicidal. I also bet the parent poster thinks people keep falling off the Tobin because they're standing too close to the ledge and the wind pushes them off, right?)

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These could be suicides, or they could be the result of spectacularly bad decisions, like the kind I used to make pretty much every day:

I went to Brandeis, where I spent two years living in an apartment across the Fitchburg Line from the main campus. The smart, sensible thing would have been to walk down to the train crossing, then walk up to campus. The stupid, preferred method, of course, was not to take that long detour, but to make a straight line across the train tracks, where somebody was always and conveniently cutting a large hole in the fence that was supposed to keep people like me from using the tracks as a shortcut. The shortcut was just around a curve, which meant you couldn't hear a Fitchburg-bound train at all until it was right on you and then it was too late. Amazingly, nobody ever did get hit, but sometimes dumb luck wins out.

Bottom line: You might be right, but we don't know, because it hasn't been reported yet.

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Usually, if its not a suicide, there will be follow up story with more information.

If all evidence (such as the eyewitness account of the engineer) suggests suicide, then you won't hear any more about it.

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These two come only a week after the news covered the feel good story about the pitbull saving a woman's life pulling her from the tracks, but giving up his hind leg to do so. She was "unconscious" on the tracks.

Seems there were only a few news reports stating she had alcohol abuse issues in the past. Which kind of changes that happy story.

10K bet she "passed out" on the tracks and now that awesome dog lost a leg for her irresponsibility. Why the news reported it otherwise is beyond me.

Poor dog...

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and you're a heartless little shit, as are prosecutors and police:

"Spain, who Lanteigne said relapsed before her collapse last week upon hearing some bad news, was arrested on the scene and arraigned the following day in Ayer District Court on charges of obstruction and danger on a railroad track, walking on a railroad track and animal cruelty,"

Yeah. That's just what a woman who was on the right track, but turned suicidal, needs. A slew of criminal charges. Dicks.

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... for your compassion. Our heartless world needs more of the likes of you. Reading your post just made my night.

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I do feel bad for that poor dog also. Pitbulls are very loyal to their owners and it's amazing the bond that they have. :) Unfortuately, these last two victims did not have a trusty dog by their sides. -Mea www.hertrainstories.blogspot.com

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