my friends 15 year old daughter became part of a suicide pact this past week her and a friend stepped in front of an Amtrack Acella Train.Please pray for the families involved.
Here is The Story:
Soon after the deaths of two Interboro High School sophomores were determined suicide-by-train Saturday, Norwood Police Chief Mark DelVecchio mulled another, even tougher, question.
Why?
“That’s not something we will be able to answer,” said DelVecchio, adding that he and his officers looked into every available avenue since the call about Vanessa M. Dorwart, 15, and Gina C. Gentile, 16, came in Thursday, at 10
a.m.
The bodies of the teens — both described by friends as beautiful and fun-loving but despondent in recent weeks over the death in January of schoolmate William Bradley V — were found on the southbound tracks at the Norwood Train Station, located on Welcome Avenue.
Authorities have text messages between Dorwart and a third female just minutes before impact “leading us to believe this was not an accident,” DelVecchio said.
“Gentile and Dorwart embraced and were struck,” DelVecchio said.
Saturday night, Kim Dorwart said she was still trying to digest all the information she was given about her beloved daughter, who would have celebrated her 16th birthday this coming Wednesday.
“It’s so hard,” she said. “I just really don’t know what to say.”
Norwood police learned about Thursday’s incident from Prospect Park police officers. The neighboring officers were with the third teen — who authorities said had intended to take her own life that morning at the Norwood Train Station, but changed her mind.
Members of the third teen’s family had been out looking for her after getting a call from the school regarding her absence, authorities said.
The teen, whose name is being withheld by the Daily Times, was in shock as she told Prospect Park police what she had just witnessed, according to DelVecchio.
The ensuing investigation was exhaustive, including interviews with family and friends among many facets of the puzzle. While schoolmates and posters on Facebook had said from the outset that the deaths were planned, authorities declined to speculate without definitive word from the Delaware County Medical Examiner’s Office.
“The medical examiner has ruled the manner of both deaths as suicide,” DelVecchio stated in a prepared release, issued shortly after 7 p.m. Saturday.
Complete autopsies were conducted Friday by the county’s Assistant Medical Examiner, Dr. Bennett Preston.
Authorities said impact with the train, an Amtrak Acela that can reach speeds of 150 mph, was dead center, dismissing any speculation that the teens’ were caught while trying to cross the tracks.
According to the release: The third teen, or witness, and Gentile left the high school about 9:30 a.m., with the intention of taking their lives. Both teens walked to the Norwood station and sat in the waiting area on the South side.
Dorwart texted the witness to wait for her “so she could take her life, also.” Dorwart arrived afterward, and met up with the other two.
Gentile heard a train whistle and immediately stepped onto the tracks. Dorwart ran out and joined Gentile. The witness changed her mind not to do it, yelling at the two to get off the tracks. They refused. Gentile and Dorwart embraced and were struck.
Diane Dimond, a TV/print journalist from Rockland, N.Y., was on the train, which was heading to Washington, D.C. from Boston. She and two colleagues boarded at Penn Station, about 9 a.m.
“We were in the middle of a strategy session ... We heard this loud crack,” Dimond said. Those on the train murmured about probably having hit some ice on the tracks, or a tree branch.
Within a minute or so, she said, the train stopped.
For two hours, they sat on the rails. A conductor or someone said there was trouble with holes, or hoses, depending on who you asked.
Those on board went about their business, as much as they could. “The biggest thing on my mind that day was beating the snow,” she said.
Then, Dimond said a passenger returned from getting a cup of coffee in the club car.
“He said to me, ‘I heard we hit two little girls,’” Dimond recalled. “That put everything into perspective very quickly.”
Without any initial details, she said those on the train were immediately thinking toddlers, little ones wandering away from home and getting hit.
None of the Amtrak workers would provide any more details.
Passengers watched as police arrived. Dimond and others turned to their Blackberries, looking for an explanation of what was happening. She called her husband, who is employed by CBS Radio in New York, and he sent some local breaking-news reports.
Dimond, who had been doing some reading about a series of suicide-by-train deaths involving students at a high school in Palo Alto, Calif., said she couldn’t help but wonder — suicide.
Saturday night, Dimond was told of the suicide findings.
“That makes me just weepy,” she said. “I’m the mother of a daughter.”
As she sat on the tracks last week, Dimond said she spoke of the four students in a row at Henry Gunn High School in California who had taken their lives. She also spoke of the parents who began taking turns, sitting on the tracks and monitoring until the very last train pulled out — to stop the next one.
DelVecchio spent most of the day Saturday at the Delaware County Medical Examiner’s Office. He joined Delaware County Medical Examiner Dr. Fredric N. Hellman in separate meetings with the teens’ family members to discuss the official findings.
DelVecchio said the families of the two teens want to express their thanks to all in the community who have offered comfort, support.
“They know they cannot bring their daughters back. What they want to know now, is what can be done so this doesn’t happen to any other parent,” DelVecchio said.
DelVecchio said investigators have looked into information regarding a “suicide pact” involving as many as seven individuals, including the three teens, but have no verification.
“We strongly urge if you have any knowledge of anyone who is talking about suicide, let someone know,” DelVecchio said. “Contact a family member, friend, teacher or counselor so they can get the proper attention.”
Friday night, after making funeral arrangements and attending a vigil at the train station, Kim Dorwart said if her daughter was in torment, she truly did not know it.
“It’s something I need to know,” she said.
She said her daughter was upset by the death of schoolmate Bradley, who was dating Gentile. Bradley was struck and killed while riding his bike across South Avenue in Glenolden on Jan. 19.
As her mother, Dorwart did not believe Vanessa was distraught to the point of ending her life.
“But I just don’t know,” she said.
All Kim Dorwart knows for sure is how very much her daughter was loved, and how very much she wishes for one more chance to tell her. She expressed similar sentiments Saturday afternoon, just prior to her meeting with DelVecchio and Hellman.
Here is the Actual newspaper article
Worst fears confirmed: 2 Interboro girls took own lives - The Delaware County Daily Times : Serving Delaware County, PA(DelcoTimes.com)
Here is The Story:
Soon after the deaths of two Interboro High School sophomores were determined suicide-by-train Saturday, Norwood Police Chief Mark DelVecchio mulled another, even tougher, question.
Why?
“That’s not something we will be able to answer,” said DelVecchio, adding that he and his officers looked into every available avenue since the call about Vanessa M. Dorwart, 15, and Gina C. Gentile, 16, came in Thursday, at 10
a.m.The bodies of the teens — both described by friends as beautiful and fun-loving but despondent in recent weeks over the death in January of schoolmate William Bradley V — were found on the southbound tracks at the Norwood Train Station, located on Welcome Avenue.
Authorities have text messages between Dorwart and a third female just minutes before impact “leading us to believe this was not an accident,” DelVecchio said.
“Gentile and Dorwart embraced and were struck,” DelVecchio said.
Saturday night, Kim Dorwart said she was still trying to digest all the information she was given about her beloved daughter, who would have celebrated her 16th birthday this coming Wednesday.
“It’s so hard,” she said. “I just really don’t know what to say.”
Norwood police learned about Thursday’s incident from Prospect Park police officers. The neighboring officers were with the third teen — who authorities said had intended to take her own life that morning at the Norwood Train Station, but changed her mind.
Members of the third teen’s family had been out looking for her after getting a call from the school regarding her absence, authorities said.
The teen, whose name is being withheld by the Daily Times, was in shock as she told Prospect Park police what she had just witnessed, according to DelVecchio.
The ensuing investigation was exhaustive, including interviews with family and friends among many facets of the puzzle. While schoolmates and posters on Facebook had said from the outset that the deaths were planned, authorities declined to speculate without definitive word from the Delaware County Medical Examiner’s Office.
“The medical examiner has ruled the manner of both deaths as suicide,” DelVecchio stated in a prepared release, issued shortly after 7 p.m. Saturday.
Complete autopsies were conducted Friday by the county’s Assistant Medical Examiner, Dr. Bennett Preston.
Authorities said impact with the train, an Amtrak Acela that can reach speeds of 150 mph, was dead center, dismissing any speculation that the teens’ were caught while trying to cross the tracks.
According to the release: The third teen, or witness, and Gentile left the high school about 9:30 a.m., with the intention of taking their lives. Both teens walked to the Norwood station and sat in the waiting area on the South side.
Dorwart texted the witness to wait for her “so she could take her life, also.” Dorwart arrived afterward, and met up with the other two.
Gentile heard a train whistle and immediately stepped onto the tracks. Dorwart ran out and joined Gentile. The witness changed her mind not to do it, yelling at the two to get off the tracks. They refused. Gentile and Dorwart embraced and were struck.
Diane Dimond, a TV/print journalist from Rockland, N.Y., was on the train, which was heading to Washington, D.C. from Boston. She and two colleagues boarded at Penn Station, about 9 a.m.
“We were in the middle of a strategy session ... We heard this loud crack,” Dimond said. Those on the train murmured about probably having hit some ice on the tracks, or a tree branch.
Within a minute or so, she said, the train stopped.
For two hours, they sat on the rails. A conductor or someone said there was trouble with holes, or hoses, depending on who you asked.
Those on board went about their business, as much as they could. “The biggest thing on my mind that day was beating the snow,” she said.
Then, Dimond said a passenger returned from getting a cup of coffee in the club car.
“He said to me, ‘I heard we hit two little girls,’” Dimond recalled. “That put everything into perspective very quickly.”
Without any initial details, she said those on the train were immediately thinking toddlers, little ones wandering away from home and getting hit.
None of the Amtrak workers would provide any more details.
Passengers watched as police arrived. Dimond and others turned to their Blackberries, looking for an explanation of what was happening. She called her husband, who is employed by CBS Radio in New York, and he sent some local breaking-news reports.
Dimond, who had been doing some reading about a series of suicide-by-train deaths involving students at a high school in Palo Alto, Calif., said she couldn’t help but wonder — suicide.
Saturday night, Dimond was told of the suicide findings.
“That makes me just weepy,” she said. “I’m the mother of a daughter.”
As she sat on the tracks last week, Dimond said she spoke of the four students in a row at Henry Gunn High School in California who had taken their lives. She also spoke of the parents who began taking turns, sitting on the tracks and monitoring until the very last train pulled out — to stop the next one.
DelVecchio spent most of the day Saturday at the Delaware County Medical Examiner’s Office. He joined Delaware County Medical Examiner Dr. Fredric N. Hellman in separate meetings with the teens’ family members to discuss the official findings.
DelVecchio said the families of the two teens want to express their thanks to all in the community who have offered comfort, support.
“They know they cannot bring their daughters back. What they want to know now, is what can be done so this doesn’t happen to any other parent,” DelVecchio said.
DelVecchio said investigators have looked into information regarding a “suicide pact” involving as many as seven individuals, including the three teens, but have no verification.
“We strongly urge if you have any knowledge of anyone who is talking about suicide, let someone know,” DelVecchio said. “Contact a family member, friend, teacher or counselor so they can get the proper attention.”
Friday night, after making funeral arrangements and attending a vigil at the train station, Kim Dorwart said if her daughter was in torment, she truly did not know it.
“It’s something I need to know,” she said.
She said her daughter was upset by the death of schoolmate Bradley, who was dating Gentile. Bradley was struck and killed while riding his bike across South Avenue in Glenolden on Jan. 19.
As her mother, Dorwart did not believe Vanessa was distraught to the point of ending her life.
“But I just don’t know,” she said.
All Kim Dorwart knows for sure is how very much her daughter was loved, and how very much she wishes for one more chance to tell her. She expressed similar sentiments Saturday afternoon, just prior to her meeting with DelVecchio and Hellman.
Here is the Actual newspaper article
Worst fears confirmed: 2 Interboro girls took own lives - The Delaware County Daily Times : Serving Delaware County, PA(DelcoTimes.com)
