Hey all

My lawyer neighbor called this afternoon. She's been following this too. Apparently the federal government filed in this case a "MOTION for Writ of Habeas Corpus ad testificandum" for one of the "missing" material witnesses, with the initials DJH. It uses a lot of latin. The U.S. Marshalls Service has a page that explains what this means:

https://www.usmarshals.gov/process/habeas.htm#:~:text=A%20writ%20of%20habeas%20corpus,to%20testify%20(ad%20testificandum).

This likely means that one of the missing witnesses is in custody and the motion is asking the court to order the law enforcement agency that has that person to produce them in court in Wyoming so they can testify. The motion is not a public document, but you can see the docket entry here (see attached pdf).

Maybe we will find out why they all of a sudden did not want to cooperate. Looks like the trial may happen after all.

My neighbor former wasatch employee told me the two missing witnesses weren't exactly upstanding squeaky clean citizens before during or after their employment with wasatch so I can't say I'm surprised.

Alternate perspective...
YouTube

Oh dear, nothing is ever simple is it.

One of the witnesses is going to have an all expense paid trip on Con Air, complete with meals and lodging, to beautiful, historic Cheyenne and the other is...

This has now fallen squarely into Possibility 3) with some overtones of Possibility 4)since His Honor only issued one writ by name.

Stay tuned for Episode Two...

If you drop the middle initial, DJH, to just DH, some records start showing up. KY court access seems to be pay to play, but a DEH is in jail right now for fail to appear/contempt/slander style case, and this same person has previous arrest records for FTA last year.

You're probably right on the money but I don't think its a good idea to go too far into similar names here without some other identifiers.

They only need one witness for statutory violation of asbestos, or other environmental, laws.

Much of the ensuing 'action' smacks to me of something called 'strict scrutiny', which some Federal agencies are past masters of. When a person or entity is suspected of some kind of Federal crime, the personnel use this as justification for conducting a fishing expedition for any other violation, no matter how slight -- they justify this by saying 'if they cheated us in one thing, they may have cheated in other ways, too -- and no violation, no matter how small, is exempt from subsequent prosecution.

Pour encourager les autres, of course.

The same thing gets applied after a conviction... the government has basically-unlimited access to funds and franking privileges, and will make a point out of publicizing WRC's and/or John's new pariah status. All the local newspapers, all the trade press, probably in multiple waves. This is intentional: I managed to keep Boucher & Slack out of the toils of this process, but it took a great deal of being open and not stonewalling the 'investigator' sent out after we had a complaint filed under the then-just-passed ADA. I was blissfully unaware of the meaning of 'strict scrutiny' until the investigator gleefully explained how it would be used in cases like ours -- basically, no matter how small the issue with the actual violation.

I am increasingly wondering exactly how this particular whistle came to be blown, in particular just what the public exposure to asbestos turns out to be.

So then why on earth were they hired in the first place? Hmmm.

Cheap , unskilled labor would be my guess..judging from everything that's come out.

There are two explanations:
1) There ARE people that take the approach that "everyone deserves a second chance" and will hire people who have been "down on their luck" and seemingly eager to get themselves on the right track, be it just for some religious ethos, them being a reformed alcoholic themselves, whatever;

2) Have you SEEN the labor market of late? In the unattractive low end of the job market these days, seemingly all you need is a pulse and some willingness to show up on time at least SOME of the time. And the biggest category they're having major problems filling are "grunt" jobs, and dealing with asbestos has to be right up there with killing and gutting meat animals, landscaping, etc. for unattractive jobs!
(HOW bad? There are trucking companies that are reported as acting on a suggested Canadian government initiative to cancel CDL licenses of protesting truckers by sending messages and flyers to truckers, truck stops, and protesters "Need Work? We need truckers and have a work visa program!!!".........)

"Let the restoration begin—The L&N 2132 steam engine is finally getting some much-needed attention. Project Manager Chris Hollon and his team can be spotted on Depot Street in Corbin putting in hours of work to save the relic. Steam Engine 2132 was transported from Bainbridge, GA in January 2016, where it has sat for the majority of its retirement. The train worked as a yard switcher along lines in the DeCoursey, Kentucky and Corbin areas. Tourism Director Maggy Kriebel said it’s a dream come true to not only be able to bring her back home but to also to be able to restore her to her full glory. “The Corbin Tourism and Convention Commission is totally thrilled to have Wasatch Railroad Contractors on site,” Kriebel said. “Her restoration is in the best of hands with Wasatch and the final product will be something for tourists and citizens to be able to enjoy for generations to come.”

Chris Hollon has been associated with Wasatch for a long time. This article was published on March 3,2017 in The Times-Tribune, Corbin, KY newspaper. The project on L&N 2132 was started after the asbestos abatement project on CNJ 1021.

Is the Corbin engine referenced above the same engine generally referred to as the K&T locomotive, or is this a separate victim of Wasatch/Rimmasch??

Ross Rowland

As of last year L&N 2132 was a static display with a roof over her head:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPi ... id=5552882

Looks like she's had a rough time in the preservation era.

https://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=562794

No.

The Corbin engine is a L&N locomotive, as stated in the posts.

The engine in Stearns, KY is ex-UNION RR #77 / ex-M&NF #14 / ex-Tombstone Junction #77 / Now K&T #14.

A couple of personal side notes:
1) I remember the Chessie System steam specials running through my hometown (near Huntington, WV) as teenager, and met Mr. Rowland in Huntington once with #614. The only time I've ever seen an "at speed" steam passenger train at night was once when #614 was really behind schedule, and came through my hometown about 10pm at a bazillion MPH.
2) I'm saddened by all of this K&T #14 mess. I was the GM at BSFSRY and was the person who proposed, persuaded, and executed the beginning of this restoration. I made the decision to use the historic #14 number instead of #77. I was removed as project director by the board in favor of "more experienced professional persons" within five months of beginning disassembly, and later was removed as GM as things deteriorated. Two contractors, twenty years, and who knows how much money later, and what does the future hold now? I did not fit well with Mr. Lindsey and have never met Mr. Rimmasch.

The court recently had a hearing about the one witness that was picked up by the U.S. Marshals because he disappeared before trial. The one witness in custody will be held in custody until the jury trail, which is now set for April 4 in Cheyenne.