Just remembered another one. Back sometime in the 1980s, a hot WB Santa Fe freight on the Valley Division (991/199/or Z, don't really recall) hit the rear end of a dual load of hay bales which had stopped foul of a grade crossing near the end of a controlled siding (East end of Empire, if memory serves correctly). One of the bales flew off and landed on the cab of a pick-up (or auto), killing the occupant. Also involved, if only tangentially, was an EB passenger train (a loaded San Joaquin) which was stopped, waiting in the clear for a meet with the freight.

The regional CHP (Calif Highway Patrol) commander had promulgated a policy that any incident involving a human death was to be considered a homicide until proven otherwise, and everyone in the vicinity of such incidents had to be "interviewed". So the responding CHP units, who had to follow orders, announced they were going to hold the passenger train and "interview" every single passenger, over 100 of them, even though none really knew what had happened, let alone actually witnessed the accident as it transpired. Higher-ups on the AT&SF got all wound up and called a big enough cheese at CHP headquarters in Sacramento, who promptly countermanded the regional commander. My friend at the PUC later related that his task force paid the regional office (and commander) a visit to clue them in on proper grade crossing accident investigation procedures.