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Man charged over bid to kill himself on DLR tracks
Emma Rowley24 Aug 2009
A man who threatened to kill himself by jumping onto railway tracks is being prosecuted in one of the first cases of its kind.
Michael Finnegan, 26, has appeared in court and now awaits trial after climbing on to a Docklands Light Railway bridge last month.
The former charity worker, from south London, was persuaded not to jump and was then arrested near Gallions Reach station.
Finnegan, a member of the Bank of England rugby team, was freed on bail after he agreed to counselling and treatment at a psychiatric unit.
On the day of his release from St Mary's Hospital in Roehampton he learned he was being charged with obstructing a railway, which carries a maximum sentence of two years, trespass and causing a public nuisance.
He has pleaded not guilty and will appear on 10 September for committal at Isleworth crown court.
A British Transport Police source said: "In almost 20 years I've never heard of a case like this."
