As authorities continue to investigate how a man died after being hit by a train at a downtown Minneapolis light-rail platform last week, they also are trying to figure out how a graphic video of the incident ended up online.
The video, which appeared on Twitter, shows the moment Reginald Eugene Snelling, 41, of Minneapolis seemingly was pushed onto the tracks around 1:30 a.m. May 20. He was run over by a Metro Transit train as it pulled out of the Hennepin Avenue/Warehouse District station.
A Metro Transit spokesman on Friday said although he could not confirm with certainty, the video appears to have come from a security camera at the station on 5th Street between Hennepin Avenue and 1st Avenue N.
"Along with other law enforcement partners, we are reviewing how this video made its way into the public domain," said transit agency spokesman Drew Kerr.
Minneapolis police are leading the investigation into Snelling's death, which has been ruled a homicide. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office said Snelling died from multiple blunt force injuries and asphyxia from colliding with and being compressed by the train.
The video shows a man appearing to push Snelling onto the tracks during a fight. He was arrested but released from jail this week. The Star Tribune does not generally name suspects until they have been charged.
The Hennepin County Attorney's Office this week said it was deferring any potential charges until receiving final toxicology and autopsy reports and additional law enforcement investigation.
"There is clear Metro Transit video of the interaction between the decedent and the subject of the investigation, which begins inside a light rail car and continues on the station platform after they exited the train," the statement said. "The video raises questions and legal issues that must be resolved to ensure any possible charges are supported by sufficient evidence to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt in court and that the state is able to overcome possible defenses that could be raised."
