New NJ Transit reporter leaves big hole in suicide story

NJ Transit's Secaucus Junction rail station is patrolled by transit police officers. Is that true at the agency's smaller stations? Today, The Record's story on suicide by train doesn't discuss whether more police officers could deter intentional and accidental deaths on the tracks.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

You have to give points to Staff Writer Christopher Maag for what is likely The Record's first thorough discussion of whether fences and other barriers can prevent people from committing "suicide by train."

But strangely absent from today's Page 1 takeout is any mention of NJ Transit police officers, and how many stations are actually patrolled to prevent intentional and accidental deaths (A-1).

Maag, the new transportation writer, and just about every other reporter in the Woodland Park newsroom have a heavy burden:

Working with clueless local assignment editors who rarely leave the office and whose knowledge of the world fits comfortably inside one of the office toilets.

Still, The Record has been reporting on deaths at or near train stations for years now. Maybe, the next story will discuss the role of transit police officers.

The bottom line

Sadly, today's story notes "the one measure suicide experts believe would be most effective at preventing intentional deaths by train: Building fences to keep people off of the tracks" (A-7).

Maag goes on to say "that would be a daunting and expensive exercise, requiring the already cash-strapped agency to erect up to 1,000 miles of fence."

That last description of NJ Transit as "already cash strapped" is in keeping with the paper's long-held belief that mass transit should pay for itself or even make a profit.

But that's nonsense, and it fed into Governor Christie's mean-spirited move in late 2010 to stop the building of two new rail tunnels under the Hudson River, because they allegedly would cost New Jersey "too much."

That allowed the GOP bully to refuse to raise the low gasoline tax to replenish the Transportation Trust Fund -- secure in the knowledge he could divert hundreds of millions in unused tunnel money to road projects.

Recovering addicts

Today, The Record carries the second part of an investigative report on the lack of state oversight and regulation of numerous homes that "cater to recovering addicts" (A-1).

Leading the front page is another report on Elizita, a Guatemalan teen who entered the United States illegally this summer to join her father, who also is an illegal immigrant (A-1).

The latter story is sure to inflame readers in Saddle River and other wealthy towns where anti-immigrant sentiment is strong.

Local news

You know life is good in Ridgewood and Glen Rock from the lead headline on L-1 today:

"2 towns unite over car break-ins"

The story doesn't say how many of the 20 vehicles were left unlocked.

A second story on the Local front was written by the same reporter, Andrew Wyrich (L-1).

He describes the midgets that raced around the track of Hinchcliffe Stadium in Paterson as "tiny," and said "some operated with an engine comparable to that of a snowmobile or lawn mower."

Typically, the four-cylinder engine used in a midget race car produces more than 300 horsepower.

But a photo caption with the story describes the cars as "three-quarter" midgets.

That confuses readers. Were two types of midgets racing on Sunday?

Editors panic over 'exploding' trains in North Jersey

Amid a lavish display of flowers, photos of a beaming Leyla Kan, 60, the woman killed by a school bus in Leonia last week, appeared in the window of her pizza-and-pita restaurant in Palisades Park on Monday, above and below. Picnic Cafe, which was closed on Monday, is one of the few non-Korean businesses on Broad Avenue.

The bouquets turned the sidewalk fragrant. Some of the Korean-Americans who stopped to look at the memorial didn't know how Kan had died. The Record did one story on the fatal accident, which resulted in traffic summonses being issued to the school-bus driver, but no follow-ups to resolve unanswered questions.

By VICTOR E. SASSON
EDITOR

Should I worry or is today's Page 1 account of exploding oil trains passing through neighboring Teaneck just a sensational attempt to sell The Record during a sleepy August?

As a resident of Hackensack, I'm trying to figure out whether I'm far enough away to be safe after derailment of  "aging" rail tanker cars that carry "millions" of gallons of "highly explosive crude oil" through North Jersey (A-1).

This appears to be a major piece of investigative journalism guided by Editor Martin Gottlieb.

Full story -- finally

The front of Local today fills in many of the details missing in Monday's hastily prepared story about a woman struck and dragged to her death at the Hawthorne farmers' market by a speeding pickup truck (L-1).

The victim, beautician Donna Marie Wine, 58, of Hawthorne lived near the suspect, James T. Woetzel, 48, the driver who was charged with vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of an accident on Sunday, but they didn't know each other, The Record says.

"Neither police not the county Prosecutor's Office would reveal details of the horrific incident," forcing Staff Writers Minjae Park, Andrew Wyrich and Jim Norman to wait for the next press release.

However, the reporters are sticking with the victim being dragged four blocks, even though other media accounts put the distance at a half-mile.

Robin Williams

Burned-out columnist Bill Ervolino again uses the death of a prominent entertainer to promote his own sorry ass (BL-1).

Why does this "appreciation" of Williams begin like others he's written, recapping an Ervolino interview from the dark ages, in this case 25 years ago?

You can read thousands of words about the comic genius on Page 1, the Better Living front and BL-2, and still not know how Williams died.

More questions

The cause of death was "suicide due to asphyxia" or suffocation, but does that mean Williams hung himself, put his head into the oven, was trying a weird sexual thing or killed himself in another way?

Unfortunately, you can't count on The Record for the answer, whether a death occurs as near as Leonia and Hawthorne or as far away as northern California.

Leyla Kan

In front of Picnic Cafe in Palisades Park on Monday, a woman recalled her 20-year friendship with the owner, Leyla Kan, who was killed last Thursday morning by a school bus in Leonia. 

Years ago, Kan had been severely injured in an automobile accident, and was so grateful to have survived, the friend said.

Now, the woman said, she can't believe her friend is gone. All she was doing was crossing the street.

More corrections

A correction today notes The Record can't even spell a former freeholder's name properly (A-2).

In his Sunday column, Road Warrior John Cichowski mistakenly said there are only six residential streets with direct access to Route 17 south, even though he reported previously there are seven.

Cichowski's sense of direction also is flawed in that he said a Bergen Avenue house is five blocks south of another resident, when it is, in fact, five blocks north.

Read about other flaws in the column:

Facebook page for Road Warrior Bloopers

Skeleton newsroom fumbles another fatal accident story

Marks left by investigators after Leyla Kan, 60, of Fort Lee was struck, dragged and killed by a school bus Thursday morning on Broad Avenue in Leonia.

By VICTOR E. SASSON

EDITOR

Three days after a Page 1 story left many questions unanswered about the death of a pedestrian hit by a school bus in Leonia, The Record today publishes another woefully incomplete front-page report on a pickup truck that "plowed through a farmers' market" in Hawthorne, killing a woman.

So much is missing from this story, assembled by a skeleton Sunday newsroom staff and the local assignment editor who got stuck working that day.

No names, ages

Readers don't even find the name and age of the dead woman, said to be a Hawthorne resident, or the name and age of the driver, who was being evaluated at a hospital "because he was visibly upset," the police chief said.

There also is no attempt to explain why the driver of the pickup dragged the woman at least four blocks before stopping.

The accident happened at 2:15 p.m. Sunday -- about 15 minutes after the market's official closing time.

No Web update

At 11:12 this morning, the report on the paper's Web site, NorthJersey.com, also was missing the names of the victim and driver. The story was last updated at 11:13 Sunday night.

When do Deirdre Sykes and Dan Sforza, the laziest assignment editors in journalism, get into work in Woodland Park today -- at noon or later?

NorthJersey.com does carry a video of a TV report at 5:04 this morning, but Channel 7 Eyewitness News says the woman was pinned underneath the pickup truck for a half-mile -- not the four blocks described in The Record story -- and the driver made two left turns.

Also in the video, a woman at the market describes the truck as "speeding." 

Young reporters

Today's Page 1 story was based on reporting by two males in their early 20s, Staff Writers Andrew Wyrich and Minjae Park, both of whom appear not to have any police sources.

Hawthorne Police Chief Richard McAuliffe is quoted as saying of the driver who killed the woman, "As of right now, he has not been charged."

But most of the quotes in the story come from Hawthorne Mayor Richard S. Goldberg, not the chief, who apparently refused to release information to the inexperienced reporters.

In an understatement, Goldberg said the accident is "something this town will not forget for a long time," but why is this quote on Page 1?

Highlands Act

I'm not sure why the 10th anniversary of the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act doesn't appear on the front page today, especially in view of all the holes in the fatal accident story, which would have worked better on the Local front.

The act was signed into law by Gov. James E. McGreevey, though he is better known for declaring that he is gay and resigning, also 10 years ago.

In fact, McGreevey signed the act into law on Aug. 10, 2004, a few days before he resigned.

If you read far enough, you'll learn that Governor Christie continues to be an enemy of New Jersey's environment (L-6).

Christie eliminated payments in lieu of taxes to compensate towns that lose ratables because they have protected land, said Jeff Tittel, New Jersey Sierra Club director.

Jersey water

"Even with his attacks ... and his weakening of environmental protections, the law is still on the books," Tittel said. "The law is getting enforced as best it can even with this governor."

Referring to the reservoirs and watersheds the act is meant to protect, Tittel said:

"Water in New Jersey feeds our three largest industries -- food processing, pharmaceutical and tourism."

Highlands water goes into making Budweiser beer, Manischewitz matzo, Goya Foods and Tylenol, among other products.