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Reporter admonished to stop 'stoking fear' by asking whether people should be worried about a driver who jumped a curb and killed a bicyclist on a sidewalk
By adamg on Fri, 10/04/2024 - 12:42pm
Streetsblog Mass reports the driver who hit and killed John Corcoran on a pedestrian/bicyclist path next to Memorial Drive has had his license suspended during an investigation but has yet to be charged with anything:
When StreetsblogMASS asked [State Police spokesman Tim] McGuirk whether the State Police considered the driver who killed Corcoran to be an ongoing threat to public safety, especially in a motor vehicle, McGuirk said “I think that's a really unfair question.”
McGuirk also admonished against "stoking fear" about a driver who drove an SUV at lethal speeds onto a crowded bike and jogging path in broad daylight.
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Comments
Halfway to a bit more sidewalk safety.
Headlong into more dangerous State Police behavior.
Something stinks
No idea what it is, but there is something about the driver that the cops don't want to be made public - maybe it's political connections, police connections or police friends/family.
The "I think that's an unfair question" response to what is a perfectly fair question tips their hand.
until proven guilty
....he is innocent. Until then.
That's how it works here. It's not your business. We're free to ask, and the Popo are allowed to say it's not a fair question to ask a representative of the executive branch.
If we want it to work some other way, maybe we could try some other place, or ask someone whose hands aren't tied before we clutch our pearls?
Guilty until proven innocent
Guilty until proven innocent does not mean "name is hidden until proven guilty". There seems to be a reasonable expectation that someone is going to have a trial here.
Sounds like the mere thought of …:
…. questioning the State Police is clutching your balls.
Considering the law
And the state of things when the questions were asked, it was a fair question and has nothing to do with guilt or innocence.
From the article:
https://www.mass.gov/info-details/fatal-motor-vehicle-suspensions#prelim...
HERE?
The standards of a criminal court do not pertain to every other aspect of life.
Do you understand that we can have a conversation about what likely happened? Do you understand that we can reach conclusions that result in moral condemnation?
The only thing that we have agreed upon as a society is that we will not impose criminal punishment until proven guilty. As this message board does not have the ability to impose criminal punishment, please stop saying this. It's dumb.
Okay
So. Both of you are on that list of johns that can't be released, either?
Do tell!
Most Americans can expect to see their name in the paper when they kill somebody. But not special important people like you and the homicidally negligent driver in question.
Oh, and since when did "the trigger on my AR-15 stuck" become an excuse? Because that's the equivalent deadly weapon lame ass excuse.
Can we at least ask
if the investigation is going any further than:
Killer Driver: oops didn't see him LOL sorry
Police: haha no worry just don't do it again, JK we don't care if you do it again or not
As seems to be pretty much the standard 'investigation' around here
Its all just so tiresome
Nothing is going to change.
Even if they do get to trial, it'll be just like the Alexander Motsenigos case. No jury is going to convict someone of crimes they also commit.
Same reason we won't get traffic enforcement cameras, no one on Beacon Hill wants to be held accountable for breaking the law.
I'm curious
It's not as if politicians in other states don't speed and run red lights so how is it that Rhode Island managed to get traffic cameras installed but Mass legislators can't bring themselves to allow something that would generate funds and make roads safer? Politicians also park illegally but parking tickets are a thing.
As for the reckless driver who couldn't stay on the road, if he had a medical incident (unlikely but possible) they would have said so by now.
Parking tickets ARE a thing
WHEN the police enforce the law of course, which is a big qualifier.
Its easier to do nothing, who cares anymore.
stoking fear indeed
The guy only killed someone. People need to stop getting so worked up. /s
Someone died
but nobody gave you a licence to fill in the things you do not know about the situation with what you NEED to be true. For all I know his accellerator got stuck and this was just a tragic accident. For all you know, too.
But hey, tell whatever story helps you sleep. It's what you would want us to do to you when you're involved in a tragedy, riiiiiight?
Oh look!
The Staties are posting on UHub!
Does each post
count as 4 hours of OT?
Great logic
Yes, if it isn't "News you can use" it shouldn't be reported, right? The only thing people should care about is traffic and weather.
People care because they feel sympathy with the victim and fear they could be next.
Absence of evidence is not
Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence, but it certainly does make absence seem more likely. If the driver's accelerator got stuck, there's been plenty of time by now for the authorities to say so, and they probably would've; we learned that the guy who crashed into Sweet Tomatoes in Newton had been having a medical emergency basically right away. In this case the silence is deafening.
Also, Mr. McGuirk could've just said "our investigation is ongoing," but chose instead to castigate the person who asked the question. I don't know about you, but to me that means something, and it's not good.
Accelerator got stuck!
Oh my.
How often does that really happen? Really?
This has become the "I only had two drinks" of reckless driving!
Anecdata
Happened to me, twice. Once in my 57 Chevy when the carburetor return spring broke. Another time, when I borrowed a Renault Dauphine, and the guitar capo my friend was using as a return spring broke. Those were the days.
On neither occasion did I drive onto a sidewalk or hit anybody or anything.
Actually
The driver did kill someone. That's a fact, whether you like it or not.
Maybe it's not criminal (in your stuck accelerator example), but he killed him all the same.
Why are you spending your
Why are you spending your free time defending a killer? Why do you want the killer protected and the public not aware of who is out there killing people? Ask yourself that. And "my gas pedal was stuck" isn't a license to kill. If you want to operate a deadly weapon on public streets, you have the responsibility to do that in a safe manner. The driver still should be charged with serious crimes.
Ad Hominem
why are you changing the subject to me, and why are you making that ludicrous claim about me?
Personal Foul, 10 yards, 2nd Down.
not ad hominem.
not ad hominem.
That's not how ad hominem fallacy works
Impugning your character would be an ad hominem attack. Impugning your arguments, which appear to be made in bad faith, is not.
Is that black lipstick?
Or boot polish?
You know what else stokes fear?
A Statie screaming at people driving through the airport.
(Expletive) pigs.
In my limited experience,
In my limited experience, Troopers always ask you nicely the first time to drive on, drive around, or take this alternate route, but when you don’t comply (by asking a question, or bargaining) they dial it up to full drill sergeant mode.
Let's hope any trial follows this precedent
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/10/03/metro/man-life-in-prison-murder-o...
Drunk driving being the unknown variable
When its a driver that wasn't drunk but had "19 license suspensions over the past 30 or so years; six surchargeable accidents; and several moving violations" no conviction.
https://theswellesleyreport.com/2013/02/grand-jury-no-criminal-charges-i...
Ongoing Threat
I think this is THE question here. There is literally nothing to keep this guy from continuing to careen about the area except for him being publicly known.
I don't know whether his identity is being hidden simply due to the usual police favor for motorists or whether he has police/political connections that make him untouchable. Either way, he could still be hurtling through any neighborhood right now.
I would encourage anyone who comes upon a crash scene involving a pedestrian or cyclist to take photos of the motorist and their vehicle/license plate. With any luck, they won't be needed. But you would be able to forward them to the media if there is a police cover up.
If the victim was killed by
If the victim was killed by any other means the killer would be identified and likely arrested. This country is so stupid when it comes to cars. It coddles dangerous killers as long as they were operating a 4,000 pound deadly weapon.
Stop with the witch hunt!
I know it's October, but stop with the witch hunt already!
If this person's name got out or if they got charged with something related to this accident, it could ruin their life! There's nothing worse than that!
/s
/s
You know whose life was ruined here, right?
John Cocoran's life was ruined.
And there is absolutely ZERO question who ruined it.
No. There is a big question.
What is the driver’s name???!
And a smaller one which is why do
sarcasm and irony go right over your head?
Why are you posting sarcastic
Why are you posting sarcastic messages to an article about a person who was killed by someone who isn’t being held accountable or even named? Why is sarcasm your go to instead of saying what you mean? Trying to get a laugh on a thread about a killing?
You need to respond directly to the person …
… you intended this comment for.
Sarcasm and irony are obvious in person
In writing from people never met in person, without facial expression or vocal inflection? Not so much.
Read up on it sometime. https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/minds-business/youre-joking-de...
If you think sarcasm and irony go over my head, you clearly haven't been at UHub long! I had to learn to flag it with /s. Or, maybe, you have very little experience with humans.
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"unfair question"
That's only an unfair question if the police spokesman doesn't want to say "yes, people should be worried" but also can't bring himself to say that the driver is not an ongoing threat to public safety, or even to tell the reporter to ask the RMV.
mass.streetsblog.org…state-officials-say-work…
It feels like in this context the usage of “killer” is synonymous with “murderer,” which paints an entirely different characteristic of the hazards of commuting.
Are there any investigative journalists who have reported since this collision on previous incidents at this location and used this information to lay out possible scenarios of what happened here? Have the reporters spoken with eyewitnesses, or is it the best practice to wait for the investigation/accident reconstruction to be concluded?
https://mass.streetsblog.org/2024/10/04/state-officials-say-work-to-impr...
In context of history, the police have proven to be very biased
There is a large and bizarre amount of excuses for not charging drivers with crimes. When the back wheels of a truck rolled over a cyclist, the police blamed her. Despite the driver speeding and the cyclist having the right of way.
I personally watched a pickup hit someone. The responding officer gave the driver a warning. And the driver was a nice person, but he was going too fast for the conditions. The officer got everyone's name but mine.
There was a jury in Cambridge that let a garbage truck back over a pedestrian with a broken back up camera because there were headphones under the body.
America would rather have cars then safety. I don't care if they release the name. I care that the police are not investigating a homicide. I guess I should be grateful that their license was suspended.