BCT “news” article – 4/20/10

The point of this critique is to illustrate another example of the Times not getting the facts correct.

The subject story says, “[Rochester police officer Sam] Piccininni said a motorist on the bridge reported Goldinger was standing on the railing on the downstream side around 7:15 a.m., threatening to jump.  When police arrived, he said, Goldinger, apparently battling depression, didn’t even give police a chance to talk to her.  Jumping off the railing, Goldinger fell between 80 and 100 feet before slamming into the 57-degree water.”

At the very least the timeline is incorrect.  I know because I was there.  Here’s what happened.

On the way to my daily morning workout at the YMCA, I saw someone sitting (not standing) on the Monaca-Rochester bridge railing.  No one was stopped at that time.  After I got across the bridge I pulled into the DeAngelis Donuts parking lot and called 911.  According to my cell phone call log, the call occurred at 6:53 a.m. and I since checked to make sure my phone’s clock is correct.  The 911 operator told me two previous callers had just reported the same thing as I.  As a result, the 911 operator didn’t ask me for more info and that ended the call.  Immediately after the call ended, two Rochester police cars with lights flashing passed me going to the bridge.  That would place the first Rochester police officer on the scene no later than 6:55 a.m.

The story says “a motorist on the bridge reported Goldinger was standing on the railing on the downstream side around 7:15 a.m., threatening to jump.”  First, since I called 911 at 6:53 a.m., “7:15 a.m.” was about 22 minutes after my call and I wasn’t the first 911 caller.  Second, when I passed, Ms. Goldinger was sitting (not standing) on the railing by herself (There were no stopped vehicles and no one around her.) so how could someone report she was “threatening to jump?”  It’s possible someone stopped to speak with Ms. Goldinger and then left her alone before I passed by, but it seems unlikely someone who would stop would leave her alone.  Also casting doubt on this account is the railing is rounded and would be very difficult to stand on without something to steady you, though it might be possible to reach out to bridge beams for support.