Train Strikes Teenager
Posted By J.T. on September 15, 2009
A Louisburg, KS man was killed early Sunday morning by a train north of Drexel.
According to a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report, 19-year-old Zachary Messmer was on foot at the K.C. Southern tracks at E. 319th St. and Davenport Rd. when he was struck by the train.
A Jackson County Medical Examiner pronounced Messmer dead at the scene, with the time of death placed at 12:44 a.m.
You can view his obituary HERE.
Authorities have not publicly stated the reason they believe Messmer was on the tracks.
This is bad reporting. When paraphrasing news articles to re-post, you should be careful not to change the meaning of the original statements. For example, you stated: “Police are unsure why Messmer was on the tracks.” The article you referenced said, “Police have not said why they think Messmer was on the tracks.” - Two totally different meanings.
The police do know why he was on the tracks, but did not release that information publicly. Your incorrect meaning implies that he was alone and is much more likely to leave people believing that it was a suicide, which it was not.
Cass Politics tries to give up-to-date information when going live with a post. “I couldn’t say at this time” could be taken a few different ways I suppose.
Unlike newspapers and other websites, I try to stay away from the copy/paste format that is so prevalent in news stories. When possible, I try to link out to other sources so that people may glean further information if they so choose (i.e. a link to an obituary, or the Highway Patrol crash report).
The offending sentence has been reworded. If anyone has further information on this or any other article on this website, I’m sure the readers would be appreciative.