Following article is from the Star-Ledger dated 7-25-08. We are very sorry for yet another teenager's death by train in our area, and we extend our condolences to the family and friends of Jason Walton. Now, we ask everyone to think carefully: is there a problem with trains or teens?
Hillsborough shocked by death of teen
He was hit by a freight train near his house
Friday, July 25, 2008
BY CATHY BUGMAN
Star-Ledger Staff
He ran five miles that day. Then he went to the gym to lift weights.
Jason Walton's day started routinely enough Tuesday, but it ended tragically when he was hit and killed by a freight train near his Hillsborough home, authorities said.
The 18-year-old high school track star -- who recorded one of the best performances in the 800-meter run in the history of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association this past spring -- was hit near Beekman Lane, police said.
Walton's body was found on the tracks of Norfolk-Southern railroad, which runs behind his home on Peterson Road.
Somerset County Prosecutor Wayne Forrest said authorities are investigating to help determine whether Walton's death will be ruled an accident, homicide or suicide.
"We're investigating all the facts and circumstances," Forrest said. "We're waiting on a final autopsy and for more information from the railroad."
Specifically, he said investigators are looking to review possible video from the train taken before the teen was struck at 5:48 p.m.
The Hillsborough school district posted an announcement on its website and offered counseling to anyone from the system who might need it. Counselors were available yesterday and will be again today, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Walton, who was going into his senior year, placed second in the national indoor championship and seventh in the national outdoor championship for the 800-meter race. He initially showed little interest in athletics.
When he began as a freshman at Hillsborough High School, friends and family said, he was encouraged by his parents to pursue a sport and chose track because it was the shortest season and would allow him to pursue another interest close to his heart: Paintballing.
He quickly established himself as a force to contend with on the track. His blazing speed set records -- he ran the 11th-fastest time ever in New Jersey and tied the Somerset County record for the 800 meters -- and attracted the type of media attention he openly confessed he would rather do without.
"Everyone knew he was the best on the team," said fellow teammate Rob Marley, 18. "After a race, reporters came to Jason first. But Jason would never talk about himself. He only said to reporters: 'I like the way Alex Brown came in on the last stretch or that Kevin Brower ran really well.'"
Marley, other friends and his coach yesterday fondly recalled how Walton's "selflessness" and "resolute spirit" inspired them, too.
"He was fast, very determined and completely fearless," said Rich Refi, cross-country winter and spring track coach at Hillsborough High. "Watching him run was poetry in motion."
Coaches from universities across the nation watched him, too. A stream of letters and phone calls from athletic departments at Yale, Harvard and Princeton came into his home. They sought to recruit him to their school with enticing scholarship opportunities, said his father, Ernest.
How something so tragic happened to their son is unfathomable to his father and his mother, Linda.
"We've asked ourselves a million times," his father said of how or why his son was hit. "We don't know the answer."
He and his wife accepted condolences from a steady stream of visitors who dropped by their home yesterday.
Besides his parents, Walton is survived by a sister, Heather.
A funeral service is set for Monday at 10 a.m. at Hillsborough Funeral Home, 796 Route 206 in Hillsborough.
Visitation will be Sunday from 1 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. in the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Jason Walton Track Scholarship c/o Hillsborough Funeral Home.