Oh for cryin' out loud . . . what a coupla dopes !
From The News-Leader - date-lined Macedonia [Ohio], dated October 14, 2009 - the incident happened back on Sept. 16th:
http://www.the-news-leader.com/news/article/4687670
Short version: 11:30 PM, parked next to tracks with lights out - suspicious local cop calls NS Police ==> BUSTED !!!
30 tie plates worth about $250 - that's about $8 each, so they must have been new ones (at 20 lbs. each, that's about $800 per ton, which is roughly right); scrap ones might have been worth only $1 to $2 each.
A word to the wise and cautious here - now you know another legitimate reason why the cops might be suspicious of us railfans when trackside,. So, please think about being understanding and courteous when asked to explain why you're there [the Dept. of Homeland Security paranoia notwithstanding], thanks to these 2 numbskulls = Thanks for adding to our hassles, jerks !
- Paul North.
P.S. - A few weeks ago in a 1960s issue of Trains I saw a 'Second Section' blurb by David P. Morgan about a Southern California railfan who was pretty active at reporting trespassers and thieves to railroad and local police - he had scored on something like 5 arrests in just a couple of weekends, including in the Cajon Pass area [and note that was decades before cell phones were even thought of - so it had to be by either radio or coin phones !]. DPM commented that railfans like that help our image with the industry - a viewpoint with which I concur. - PDN.
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