Aiden Quinn, the T driver who smashed his train into a stopped trolley while texting, pleaded guilty today to a charge of negligence by a person in control of a train and was sentenced to two years' probation and 100 hours of community service, the Suffolk County District Attorney's office reports.
Following the May 8, 2009 crash, which injured dozens and caused several million dollars in damage, the T banned mere possession of a cell phone by workers on duty. Spokesman Joe Pesaturo said today 22 T workers have been fired or suspended since then for violating the policy.
Suffolk County District Attorney Dan Conley expressed outrage that Quinn got no jail time:
What kind of message does this send to others? This defendant caused $10 million in damages, sent 64 people to the hospital, and shut down the Green Line on a busy spring evening. Why? Because he was trying to send a text message while pulling 80 tons of steel and glass and human lives. The riders on the train trusted him with their safety. This wasn't an accident. It was the foreseeable consequence of his actions and he should have been punished accordingly.
Prosecutors said Quinn was writing a text message to his girlfriend while going from 0 to 25 in the tunnel away from Government Center and that he blew through not just a yellow light but two red lights before plowing his train into a stopped trolley with its brake lights on.
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