LIRR Fires Engineer Who Let Passenger Drive

With a criminal trial still pending, the LIRR has fired the engineer accused of allowing a man to drive his train for up to twenty miles during a rush hour trip in July. After an internal investigation, Long Island Rail Road officials decided to terminate Ronald Cabrera for what the Nassau County DA called an "unimaginably reckless act.” Cabrera, who had worked for the LIRR for twenty years, will get to keep his pension. He still insists that hewas always in control of the Port Jefferson train heading into the city that court stenographer William Kutsch is accused of driving through seven car crossings, one pedestrian crossing, and 24 home signals. Cabrera's lawyer says the incident is "a perceived event, rather than something that really happened." He also called the termination an attempt by the MTA to divert attention from its own "fumbling, inefficient and wasteful mismanagement." Both Cabrera and Kutsch could face a year in jail if they are convicted on reckless endangerment charges.

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By Billy Parker in News on September 12, 2009 3:13 PM

Comments [rss]

JacqueMehoff

since he's not an engineer anymore, maybe he can be an actor in those Sinbad and the voyages of sinbad movies.

PTG in nyc

While this was an irresponsible decision on the engineer's part, I disagree with his firing. It doesn't seem as though he was drunk or doing something blatantly dumb even though it was still a risk. Fortunately the risk resulted in nothing bad, and they should just discipline him. Forcing him to become a poster boy for making dumb decisions at the MTA and making him speak at employee training seminars would be much better use of his error.

Even if he had done something way worse, he'd still have kept his pension when getting fired. Seems more wasteful and irresponsible of the MTA to me, being that actions they deem worthy of termination are somehow not worthy of controlling their costs. They're having it both ways and doing nothing productive for either the individual or their poorly managed agency.

Darius

He should not have been fired. He was there in the cab of the trian and was in control. Nothing wrong with letting someone hold the lever for a little bit. This is a huge over reaction on part of everyone. I'm with the engeneer on this. A preceived event.

Rfive

Perceived (notice there's no red underlining)?You were there in the cabin too?

NannyState

"Cabrera's lawyer says the incident is "a perceived event, rather than something that really happened." He also called the termination an attempt by the MTA to divert attention from its own "fumbling, inefficient and wasteful mismanagement."

And the proof lies in the fact that they hired this idiotic piece of garbage to begin with.