how LIKELY is my brother to get into trouble?
Posted: July 11th, 2011 | Author: admin | Filed under: Questions | Tags: brother, crap, decisions, family man, gang member, graffiti, little red lights, misdemeanor, passions, Pocket knife, sidewalk, train, trains | 10 Comments »my brother loves trains, but sometimes lets his passions get the best of him
he lives near a train crossing, so the other day he noticed one of the cross bars, the things that come down when a train is passing was broke and laying on the sidewalk near the street, it was still attached to the pole but barely, just by a black cable or wire, or so he said.
so he took a pocket knife and cut one of the little red lights off of it as a, quote, ”souvenir”
i hate him doing crap like that
i know he CAN get in trouble, but how likely is it?
i am kinda worried, he is a good guy and good family man just makes goofy decisions sometimes
would the city likely prosecute for what amounts to a misdemeanor? would they really go through all the trouble for something like that?
knowing him as i do, he meant no harm, he isn’t like some gang member going around spraying graffiti everywhere
still, it was wrong, just looking for input
Railfan souvenier hunters can be a headache for the railroads. Years ago they used to unscrew the builders ID plates from locomotives. The builders then welded the plates on. The railfans then pried them off with crowbars or somesuch. The insulators on lineside telegraph poles were a favorite target and I’ll bet that there are few antique and curio shops that don’t have one or two. The railroads now use microwave and buried transmission lines for communications. Rail spikes are another frequent target of the memorabilia crowd. Also date nails, obscure little metal pins that were placed in crossties to show the date of installation.
I wouldn’t concern yourself with your brother’s action. Its when he ventures onto company property in search of ‘things’ that you should be concerned.
Well, he may not be doing this to cause harm to people but the government might not see it that way. With the recent message received from Al Qaeda about them wanting to attack our rail network, the government is now on high alert. Even though he may not be a vandal, the government sees that as vandalism. If the light didn’t work, then he should have reported it to the railroad, and then when they come to fix it, he could as for a souvenir. But just cutting off is wrong. As a rail-fan, I know what he feels but it is likely that he will get in trouble if he does this often.
Unless you tell on him, no-one will know he took it. So stay dumb forever and all will be OK.
Here’s some input you and any others can take to the bank.
That broken gate is mute testimony from the last idiot who tried to make it across the grade crossing while it was activated. They get broken a lot and are a relatively quick fix, engineered to break away for just this reason, laying on the ground, that black cable still in tact. Replace a cheap part, bolt it up and you’re good to go. Repeated dozens of times a day across the country, I’m sure. I know I wish I had a buck for every time I’ve seen it or heard the report on the radio. Like I say, a common and anticipated quick fix.
That is until a different idiot comes a long and removes part of a "railroad safety appliance," (key words there) which is what that crossing protection is. This means longer length of time for repair and cost to repair, absolutely able to impact rail operations in the immediate future. Until repaired, all the trains must reduce speed over the crossing. If in a commute corridor, it can screw up the entire fleet by delaying it. These things snowball.
Now, consider the following input very, very closely:
It also means messing with a "railroad safety appliance" gets you FEDERAL time if prosecuted. If someone gets killed as a result, if convicted, the penalty is DEATH in a Federal prison. (It’s ok if afraid of needles. Hanging is an option Uncle Sam still offers.)
There ARE NO misdemeanors when dealing with railroad operations; only Federal Statutes. Except for simple trespass, I suppose. Trespass to federal penitentiary. Not much middle ground there… especially when you consider it is very easy to upgrade from trespass to burglary without intention or without even realizing it. Like when taking home a souvenir from a railroad safety appliance, as an example. Then Federal and State prosecution opens up.
Rule of thumb; not just on or around the railroad, but pretty much in all instances everywhere, if something doesn’t belong to you and you have to cut something to remove that something, chances are excellent that you are committing a crime.
I don’t know about others, but the possibilities are a bit above "in trouble" in my book, and the city fathers are the least of the worries…
Even railroad employees can be prosecuted for defeating a safety device or appliance, except for in emergency situations. A $20,000 fine can be levied against those folks, personally, outta their own check book, not a fine for the railroad, as well as jail time and de-certification, and THOSE folks know what the hell they are doing.
He would have been a dandy example to be made of in the current climate. Better tell baby bro he, or anyone so inclined, has no idea what he is screwing around with. The simple truth is, there is absolutely NOTHING that is harmless around the railroad. The consequences may vary, but are ever present.
As far as likelihood, he made it this far, he should be safe. But with cameras everywhere these days, you can never tell.
Edit. Sorry. I forgot to give you your star for a safety related topic. Thanks for asking.
relax it was just a light no harm in that the real harm is the pocket knife :/
Well the chance of him getting in any trouble is slim to none. Your obviously not going to tell anyone because he’s your brother and it wouldn’t be right. However, if he is consistently doing things like that he is going to get in some type of trouble eventually. The trouble he will get in won’t be enough to put him behind bars or in any harm if it’s along those lines. You just have to sit back and realize that boys will be boys and we all learn from our mistakes.
BIG trouble
As long as the train doesn’t hit him on his way home you shouldn’t worry about it. I once took an entire crossing signal in broad day light that was laying on the side of the road after someone had bashed into it in there car. It had the RxR signs & red lights attached and stood about 15 foot tall. I drove off with it in broad day light and past the local police station with half of the thing sticking out the truck bed. I did it all for the aluminum’s scrap value. Looking back at it now i wish i had kept it it would have made a nice conversation piece wired up to work and planted in my back yard. If he cant do the time he shouldn’t do the crime. Sometimes you get caught and sometimes you dont ….it’s a roll of the dice. Lots of family men go to jail might do him some good to eat a few cheese sandwiches and kick it with the homies.
Depending on the country you live in, what he actually did was "sabotage". By cutting the cable, the railroad safety system was interrupted, causing many more delays than the broken cross bar.
(any interference with the electrical circuit will cause alarms. They’re so called "fail-safe".
How likely? if he was not seen at all, nothing will happen. But if there was a witness, sabotage to railways IS a serious thing.
And if he wants souvenirs…. if he would have waited on the maintenance guys… with a bit of friendly talking, they might give you things….. you’ll be surprised what happens.
And now do a good thing… take a box, put the signal lamp in it. write a letter to the rail company and say that you found this on the street nearby the railroad crossing. mail the box to the press department. Ask them kindly what they do with it and if it’s not of use for them, please let them return it as a souvenir gift for your brother.
You might be surprised what happens!
And then buy him a signal or so… the official way. Can be fun!
It wasn’t "just a light" though was it – IT WAS PART OF A RAILWAY SAFETY DEVICE.
Next time he’s on a train and something goes wrong, his life might depend on somebody else having NOT stolen part of a safety device. I hope they’ve got CCTV on that crossing so that they’ve got him on tape cutting that wire.