the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, Domestic extremists have targeted and exploited railway transportation systems to harm the public, disrupt operations, and damage infrastructure. New Jersey’s transit system is the nation’s third largest provider of transportation services—such as buses, rail, and light rail transit—for approximately 270 million people annually throughout New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.
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On April 13, 2022, the US Department of Justice (US DOJ) announced that a federal court had charged Frank James with one count of committing “terrorist attacks and other violence against railroad carriers and against mass transportation systems on land, on water, or through the air.” The previous day, James opened fire on a New York City subway after setting off a smoke-emitting device, injuring 10 bystanders in a hail of gunfire. Prior to the attack, James posted several videos that contained inconsistent ideologies, espoused various conspiracy theories, and discussed issues with New York City’s subway system and Mayor.
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On November 28, 2020, authorities arrested environmental extremists, Ellen Reiche and Samantha Brooks, after BNSF Railway police officers observed the two placing a shunt—a device that interferes with train signals and can cause a train to derail or decouple—on train tracks in Bellingham, Washington. In a similar incident on October 11, 2020, an unknown individual or individuals placed shunts in multiple locations along train tracks in Whatcom and Skagit County, Washington. These devices caused a train’s automatic braking system to activate, which resulted in several flammable gas tanker cars decoupling from the locomotive near a residential neighborhood.
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On April 1, 2020, a federal court charged anti-government extremist, Eduardo Moreno, a train engineer at the Port of Los Angeles, with one count of “train wrecking.” Moreno is accused of intentionally derailing a locomotive in an attempt to crash it into a nearby US Navy hospital ship that was providing COVID-19 medical aid to the public. Following his arrest, Moreno told investigators that he was “suspicious” of the ship and believed the government was using it to spread COVID-19 or facilitate a takeover. Additionally, Moreno stated that he hoped the attack would bring media attention and “wake people up,” among other things, according to the US DOJ announcement.
Speaking of the Trussell I just went underneath it this morning, look at alongside the northside by the woods with all the litter and trash that needs to be picked up. It’s embarrassing it’s a shame that people are throwing all their garbage and litter from the top over the railing into the woods. No wonder we have rats running around. New Jersey transit needs to do their job someone needs to call them. Hey Ridgewood Board of Health can you look into this.