Comments on: Rider lessons from a subway murder

By: A Sunday-morning stabbing on the 2 train :: Second Ave. Sagas

A Sunday-morning stabbing on the 2 train :: Second Ave. Sagas — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 20:39:13 +0000

[...] bags from a seat for another rider, and that other rider killed his co-straphanger over a seat. The lessons I offered up in November served as a reminder to be wary of those around you on the train. Most New Yorkers are calm and [...]

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 04:02:44 +0000

The sarcasm comes from the victim blaming. When someone gets murdered, “Take your bags off” is almost the most insensitive response.

And there were 20-30 passengers on that car – and, presumably, Sanchez turned toward Johnson and away from them.

By: Benjamin Kabak

Benjamin Kabak — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:29:46 +0000

What’s with the nasty sarcasm? It’s very Peter Knox of you.

Considering that this incident happened and was over in the span of 10 seconds, I — and others around here — would like to hear how you think other passengers should have prevented this attack. You’ve mentioned it a few times and have no answer other than to say that passenger action just should have happened.

By: Alon Levy

Alon Levy — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:25:18 +0000

More rules:

#6: victim blaming is the new black.

#7: reading the fishwrappers reduces knowledge.

#8: subway bloggers would use any opportunity up to and including murder to talk about subway etiquette.

#9: it’s a good thing Al Qaida hijacked United 93 instead of a subway train. Subway riders would never have tried to subdue the hijackers.

By: Transit Boy

Transit Boy — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 22:09:50 +0000

DO NOT PULL THE CORD!!!!

There is a man with a knife wound in the car who needs medical attention IMMEDIATELY, what the hell good is it stopping the car for a couple of minutes between stations where no Police, EMS, Transit Worker, or Good Samaritan with medical training can reach him?

This is the same thing as asking if its good for the sick person if you intentionally run an ambulance off the road.

IF SOMEONE IS ATTACKED –

Get out at the next station and run to the conductors position calling for help, block a door if he doesn’t see you at first.

DO NOT leave a dying man hundreds of feet away from help. The friend who argued to pull the cord is dead wrong

By: More details emerge on Saturday subway slaying :: Second Ave. Sagas | A New York City Subway Blog

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 21:15:24 +0000

[...] today, I offered up my take on what we can learn from Saturday’s senseless subway killing. As the day has worn on, more details about both men [...]

By: Joe

Joe — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 19:22:51 +0000

Scott- I would agree with you about pulling the brake. It’s my understanding that every time the emergency brake is pulled, the brakes either have to be reset or the motorman (or is it conductor?) must walk the length of the train to check for what happened, which also takes a lot of time. If I were in the car, I would have tried to avoid it (hello! knife involved!) but I would have also yelled at my fellow passengers not to pull the emergency brake!! What good does it do you to be locked in a car with a killer?

By: Ferry Service Considered for Coney Island - City Room Blog - NYTimes.com

Ferry Service Considered for Coney Island - City Room Blog - NYTimes.com — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:49:34 +0000

[...] tips to avoid confrontations on the subway in light of the fatal stabbing of Dwight Johnson on a D train early Saturday morning. [2nd Avenue [...]

By: Benjamin Kabak

Benjamin Kabak — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:05:22 +0000

I’ve been reading through these reports this morning, and I’m going to update the facts of this case later on. The more I read about it, the less I think about the collective action problem. This was a conflict between two not-well people that got very out of hand very quickly.

By: Sammy Finkelman

Sammy Finkelman — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 17:01:31 +0000

The New York Post reports today (Monday) that the murdered passenger , Dwight Johnson, 36, did in fact remove his bag without a word, and it doesn’t say he fought but says that Gerardo Sanchez, the 57-year exterminator who satbbed him to death, erupted at him inexiplicably saying “You think I’m scared of you? I’m not sacred of you1″ and lunged at him with a knife, stabbing him in the carotid artery, killing him instantly, or instantly enouygh so that he stayed in his seat. There was also a stab wound in his hands, which would probably be defensive wounds. But the Daily News says that Johnson moved te bag only “eventually” and he was moving away when Johnson stabbed him (no punch eiher) The Daily News says Johnson was well known to others for placing a bag next to himself in order to prevent anyone from sitting next to him. The Daily News says the killer, Sanchez was 37, not 57. Theh Daily News found somebody else who got into a dispute with Johnson – that time over a bag on a park bench. He says tyhey argued and he pushed him because he didn’t want him sitting next to him. Possible reasons include “mental illness” or fear of germs. Johnson has a brother called Amos, who was qwuoted by the New York Post.

After the bloody murder, Sanchez, according to the Daily News, pried open a subway door of the stopped train dropped the knife on the tracks. this might indicate that stopping the train causes the violent man to realize the police will get there and try to disguise what he dd rather than commit more mayhenm. But this may not be a general 100% rule. It could be though it may actually halt things. dropping the kmnife outside did not prevent his arrest nor the prevent the police from finding it. It is not clear what messages the motorman may have gven theh passengers, but he kept the doors closed at the request of police. Sanchez’s brother says he fell two floors two weeks ago and was taking pain med taking some form of pain medication. I didn’t know they treated pain with LSD.