L.A. Train Wreck

[Winston]

And in prison, there are no trains to park in front of, no matter how bad you want it.

[/diabolical posting]

[Dinner]

He could always hang himself with a bed sheet though as that one Nazi did the night before his execution.

[Rex Little]

Originally posted by Giancarlo
I hear life in prison is more expensive then the death penalty. Especially here in ****hole California.

I've heard the opposite, that life in prison is less expensive when you figure in the cost of all the appeals needed to impose a death sentence. That's one of the things that makes this whole situation either frustrating or hilarious, depending on how warped your sense of humor is.

[Dis]

Originally posted by Giancarlo
Manslaughter is inadequate to the crime committed.

it's the appropiate crime. Overzealous prosecuters because of media attention are inappropiately charging him with murder. This doesn't even qualify as 2nd degree murder.

[Dis]

check this out: message in blood

[Dinner]

I love my kid. Damn, that's some sad stuff.

[Mordoch]

Originally posted by Oerdin
I love my kid. Damn, that's some sad stuff.

The guy survived by the way.

[The Mad Monk]

IT WAS DELIBERATE!?

Investigators: SUV Left On Tracks With Intent To Cause Crash
Amended Complaint Accuses Alvarez Of Intent

POSTED: 3:19 pm PST February 17, 2005
UPDATED: 6:10 pm PST February 17, 2005

LOS ANGELES -- Authorities filed a new charge against a man accused of leaving his sport utility vehicle on a set of railroad tracks in a fatal train wreck last month.

Investigators now say Juan Manuel Alvarez left the SUV on the track with the intent of causing a train wreck. Authorities initially believed Alvarez's actions were part of a suicide attempt.

Police said Alvarez fled on foot as the train approached.

Glendale police released a statement Thursday afternoon.

"Although first impressions may lead some to believe that Mr. Alvarez was attempting to commit suicide, the investigation has revealed that his actions are not consistent with that of an individual who was attempting to follow through with that act," investigators said in the statement.

Police said that although Alvarez "may have contemplated suicide, his actions were deliberate with the intent on causing horrific tragedy."

Investigators said they believe Alvarez thought his actions would impress his estranged wife. They said he cut himself after the crash out of frustration.

"A lot of the evidence will relate to the fact that he was in a bad relationship with his former wife, and he was trying to win her back in some bizarre way that we can't explain," said Lt Jon Perkins

Eric Chase, Alvarez's attorney, called the police statements "vicious and callous" and a "reckless distortion."

The district attorney's office has not decided whether it will seek the death penalty for Alvarez.

Alvarez, 25, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 11 murder charges. He also pleaded not guilty to a charge of arson causing great bodily injury. Authorities said earlier this week that the SUV was doused in gasoline.

The defendant's estranged wife, Carmelita Alvarez, was among a number of family members on hand at the downtown Los Angeles courthouse for his Tuesday arraignment. The 28-year-old woman, who has spoken with her husband, said he was "very sad."

"He didn't mean to hurt anybody. He really didn't mean to hurt anybody," Carmelita Alvarez said after the hearing.

"What he wanted is to take his own life," she said. "But he said that he felt a presence, like a presence from God, telling him to get out of there, you know? And he tried to move his vehicle, he tried. He never thought that would happen. He just thought the train would take his vehicle."

The Metrolink train that collided with the SUV then slammed into an oncoming Metrolink train, killing 11 people and injuring more than 180 others. The collision at the Glendale-Los Angeles city line was the deadliest U.S. train crash since 1999.

Southbound train No. 100 from Ventura County left Moorpark at 5:07 the morning of Jan. 26. At 6:01 a.m., it struck the SUV left on the tracks. The impact caused train No. 100 to derail, hit a parked Union Pacific locomotive to the right, and, as it jackknifed, strike northbound Metrolink train No. 901, which had left Union Station in downtown Los Angeles at 5:48 a.m.

Alvarez, whose last known address was in Compton, was taken into custody soon afterward and was under suicide watch because of what authorities described as self-inflicted knife injuries to his chest and wrists.
Copyright 2005 by NBC4.tv. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

http://www.nbc4.tv/news/4209727/detail.html

[The Mad Monk]

What isn't mentioned in that article, but was mentioned on the radio, is that he soaked the SUV, inside and out, with gasoline.

[Winston]

What an unbelievably nasty case.

[Dis]

this seems to make more sense, though I'm not sure I buy the reason why they said he cut his wrists. That still seems strange/.

[BlackCat]

Originally posted by The Mad Monk
What isn't mentioned in that article, but was mentioned on the radio, is that he soaked the SUV, inside and out, with gasoline.

Ehrm ...

Alvarez, 25, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 11 murder charges. He also pleaded not guilty to a charge of arson causing great bodily injury. Authorities said earlier this week that the SUV was doused in gasoline.

[The Mad Monk]

Oopsie.