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I got pulled over driving though the ronkakama train station. he let me go because my cousing happened to be working on the northside of the tracks (scpd). I had asked my cousin what are his boundries and he said "anything 1000 feet from the train stations/tracks. another friend, whom is nypd said they have full jurisdiction and can pull you over anywhere for anything because they went to the same school as state troopers. does anyone know the full story?
Right from the MTA website:
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority Police Department is the police agency of New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Officers of the MTAPD are fully empowered under the New York State Public Authorities Law and are commissioned in the state of Connecticut. Its jurisdiction extends across fourteen counties in two states, covers approximately 5,000 square miles, including New York City, Long Island, southeastern New York State and southern Connecticut, and serves a population of 14.4 million people.
The department was formed in 1998 with the consolidation of the Long Island Rail Road and the Metro-North Railroad Police Departments. Since 9/11, the department has expanded in size and has ramped up dramatically its counter-terrorism capabilities, adding canine teams and emergency services officers.
On June 1, 2005 the 25-member MTA Staten Island Railway Police Department – which was responsible for policing Staten Island Railway – merged with the MTA Police. This was the most recent step in consolidating MTA agency law enforcement, and increased the total workforce of the department to 716, including civilians.
its a board statment. of course he covers 14 counties. whereever thier rails go to, they must police. Im talking about if im driving 15 miles away from the nearest bus stop, route, train station or track, can they pull me over for lets say, a cracked windshield?
Their jurisdiction is probably as broad as the entire counties listed. As nassau2suffolk said, the probably wouldn't unless you were acting in a manner that posed an imminent danger to the public. Regardless of where they are, they have a duty, to protect the public.
They can pull you over for speeding, and if they happen to notice you have a cracked windshield, then issue a ticket.
I was in a car accident about 5 years ago. The officers that stopped (because they saw it) were NYS (or NYC) Park Police. I was nowhere near a park.
Remember, they're also union, so just because they have the authority to, they probably wont because it's not their work.
Further reading from Wikipedia (which may not be accurate):
Interesting note, they can enforce the laws of (while in) any state in which the railroad owns property. This limits the MTS police to NY & Conn.
Some railroad police officers are certified law enforcement officers and may carry full police and arrest powers. The appointment, commissioning and regulation of railroad police under Section 1704 of the U.S. Crime Control Act of 1990, provides that: "A railroad police officer who is certified or commissioned as a police officer under the laws of any one state shall, in accordance with the regulations issued by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, be authorized to enforce the laws of any other state in which the rail carrier owns property."
It is important to note that Section 1704 also states that this police authority is to "the extent of the authority of a police officer certified or commissioned under the laws of that jurisdiction". While a railroad police officer may have general peace officer authority in some states such as California, they are limited to the railroad's property in other states.
The status of railroad police officers varies by state, in that they are commissioned by the Governor of the state in which they reside and/or work in and they may carry both state level arrest powers and some interstate arrest powers as allowed by 49 USC 28101. Although railroad police primarily enforce laws on or near the railroad right-of-way, their police officers can enforce other laws and make arrests off of railroad property depending on the state in which they are working.
Depending upon the state or jurisdiction, railroad police officers may be considered certified police officers, deputized peace officers, or company special agents. In Virginia, for example, any railroad may file an application with the Circuit Court of any county where it operates to allow the President of the railroad to appoint members of its own police force.
Some of the crimes railroad police investigate include trespassing on the right-of-way of a railroad, assaults against passengers, terrorism threats targeting the railroad, arson, tagging of graffiti on railroad rolling stock or buildings, signal vandalism, pickpocketing, ticket fraud, robbery and theft of personal belongings, baggage or freight. Other incidents railroad police investigate include derailments, train/vehicle collisions, vehicle accidents on the right of way, and hazardous materials releases.
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