Another flawed Road Warrior column

A police officer saluting a fallen marine as a funeral procession passes. (Photo credit: NYCMarines)

Editor's note: In recent years, Staff Writer John Cichowski has relied on news stories and reader e-mails as he scrambles to meet The Record's demand for three Road Warrior columns a week. His editors, Deirdre Sykes and Dan Sforza, apparently haven't noticed how far Cichowski has strayed from his mission of reporting on North Jersey commuting problems.

Today, a reader points out how Cichowski omitted a major fact in reporting on a funeral procession in which 16 people were injured, and made a major error in saying Grand Avenue passes through Teaneck. The reader's e-mail was sent to Chichowski, Sykes, Sforza and Editor Marty Gottlieb.

John:

"It would help if you stopped publishing articles, such as your 10/7 column, with clueless, misleading, incomplete, or false/incorrect info that you mistakenly report and then confuse or mislead readers with a review that contradicts or mis-comprehends the facts.   

"It does not promote the integrity of The Record and offends informed readers.

"This is the 7th article on which I've notified you  about your mistaken reporting since your 9/12 column.  You make no attempt to correct or respond to your mistaken reporting & advice.

"If no effort is being made to resolve these matters or respond to me, I am publicizing these matters with other media personnel, news organizations, and your readers.

"It might be time to consider revising an age-old Record custom of allowing a columnist to misreport his stories without any consequences, if reader mail and newspaper clips, which contradict his stories, are any gauge.

"You were correct to report that it might be time to consider revising the age-old American custom of allowing a rolling entourage to transport the dead through heavy traffic, stop signs and red lights.

"However, you went off the reporting track in certain instances.

"You cluelessly reported that 'sixteen people were hurt in Queens in March when a limousine in a similar procession hit the wall of a bodega.'

"You forgot to mention that it had been extensively reported that a minivan driver, who was distracted while talking on her hand-held cellphone, caused the limousine driver to crash into the bodega. 

"The accident was caused by a distracted driver on a cell phone and not your preconceived conclusions of funeral processions.

"Your anecdotal reporting about 4 motorcycle cops hurt in funeral processions in Old Tappan and Carlstadt did NOT provide any details/reasons that showed the accidents were due to specific problems (which may or may not be applicable??) due to the funeral processions.

"You reported that 'no law in this state [NJ] … permits a member of a funeral procession to disregard a traffic signal unless directed to do so by a police officer' and 'courtesy ISN'T spelled out in [NJ] law.'

"You then contradicted yourself when you reported:

"'Unfortunately, too many people have different understandings of the [NJ] rules.' How can people have different understanding of NJ rules, as you indicated, if there are NO NJ rules/law, as you reported, pertaining to funeral processions???

"You were mistaken in that courtesy IS spelled out in one NJ law (39:4-93) for any general procession.

 

"You concluded that 'if widely misunderstood rules make processions so dangerous, why do states and communities continue to allow a custom [of funeral processions]?'

"Unfortunately, this conclusion is NOT applicable in NJ since there are NO NJ state rules/laws that are specifically written for funeral processions that make them any more dangerous.

"It would have been entirely correct to report that too many people have different understandings & misunderstandings of NJ customs and local guidelines, which are not regulated by NJ laws, related to funeral processions. 

"You also mistakenly reported about 'cars passing through the red light on Grand Avenue when she encountered a procession in Teaneck.'

"Grand Avenue is NOT located in Teaneck, as anyone with Google Map, Mapquest, or GPS, which you have access to, or those familiar with Bergen County roads could tell you. 

"As I have stated before, some of your reporting is very informative and useful.

"Here's hoping to change and better fact checking & reviewing (Googling?) by Record's editors, columnists, & reporters, for more reliable, accurate, and common sense info prior to publication."