Passenger Trains > (NY) "MTA Police Arrest Copper Theft Suspect"

http://www.mta.info/news/2014/10/31/mta-police-arrest-copper-theft-suspect

How about some federal charges of interfering with the operation of a railroad, too?

I don't see how they missed that either. Pulling the emergency brake as a prank would land you in federal prison.

Stealing copper telephone cable is a Federal Felony too.
But I've never seen anybody get charged with it.
Out here in California they usually go the Grand Theft route.

Bringing federal charges on local crimes is often a political call.

In Newark NJ, street crime was out of control. One gang set on three different people in the area of the federal buildings complex in one day, robbing them. Under local law, they would have been ticketed, booked, convicted, then released on probation (again). instead, the US attorney took the case, and charged the five lads with interfering with a federal officer (the two attorneys and a paralegal) in the performance of their duties (going to another building). Five years before consideration of parole.

The local community, predictably, went nuts. But the number of crimes went down and stayed down in the vicinity of the federal complex. The area is marked out as federal complex district, with signage around the buildings, parking lots, etc. I'd like to see a similar approach taken on theft of railroad property, violence against a railroad employee, etc.

Lackawanna484 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Bringing federal charges on local crimes is often
> a political call.
>
> In Newark NJ, street crime was out of control. One
> gang set on three different people in the area of
> the federal buildings complex in one day, robbing
> them. Under local law, they would have been
> ticketed, booked, convicted, then released on
> probation (again). instead, the US attorney took
> the case, and charged the five lads with
> interfering with a federal officer (the two
> attorneys and a paralegal) in the performance of
> their duties (going to another building). Five
> years before consideration of parole.
>
> The local community, predictably, went nuts. But
> the number of crimes went down and stayed down in
> the vicinity of the federal complex. The area is
> marked out as federal complex district, with
> signage around the buildings, parking lots, etc.
> I'd like to see a similar approach taken on theft
> of railroad property, violence against a railroad
> employee, etc.


Just takes a US Attorney who is willing to take the case.