'Happy' N.J. Woman Didn't Walk 4 Miles Into Train, Family Argues

The official story is this: Tiffany Valiante walked four miles to the NJ Transit train tracks, took off her jean shorts and sneakers and walked in front of a moving train.

She did this, even though she was, by all accounts, "happy," getting ready to go to college that fall armed with several volleyball scholarships.

She did this, even though the Mays Landing teen was deathly afraid of the dark.

She did this, going so far as to get rid of her cell phone — she never went without it — and walking to Galloway Township to end such a promising life.

A year later, the family asks: How can all that be true?

The family wants the Southern Regional Medical Examiner's Office to prove it, filing a lawsuit to subpoena files on the case from NJ Transit and the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office, among others.

If it means reopening the case, then so be it, said the family's attorney, Paul D'Amato. He said the family doesn't believe the determination, anyway.

Above all, he said, they just want clarity and to ultimately change the cause of death from "suicide" to "undetermined."

"There is no history of alcohol. There is no history of depression. She was a happy-go-lucky person," said D'Amato.

The 18-year-old had just graduated from Oakcrest High School in Mays Landing in 2015 and was awarded five volleyball scholarships, "happy" as ever about going to Mercy College that fall, according to D'Amato.

The Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office and Southern Regional Medical Examiner's Office declined to comment Tuesday, citing common practice not to comment on active lawsuits.

The day she died, Valiante was enjoying the pool at a graduation party and playing volleyball. Based on what friends and family said, the last ones who saw her, D'Amato said there were certainly no outwardly signs of distress.

That night, Valiante walked onto the tracks in Galloway Township and ignored the train engineer's signal before she was struck around 11:15 p.m. on July 12, 2015, according to NJ Transit.

Friends and family later found her cell phone on the front lawn of her home. Later, they found flashing lights at the train tracks near where her uncle lives, the site where she died, according to D'Amato.

Days later, the family found Valiante's sneakers and headband on the side of the road. Those clothes were found about 2 miles away from the crash site.

"She would have had to walk 4 miles from her home," D'Amato said. "It just doesn't make any sense."

D'Amato claims the medical examiner had no scientific or medical basis to conclude that Valiante took her own life, charging that the inquiry was "flawed" and "unprofessional, uninformed."

D'Amato claims investigators failed to interview numerous material witnesses, conduct a proper site investigation as well as an examination of relevant physical evidence, including Valiante's cell phone history.

She also appeared to be mentally strong, he said. If anything, Valiante was also looking forward to the future.

That weekend, she was making preparations, mainly clothes shopping, for college. She also had dreams, hoping to make it to the Olympic games as a volleyball player while pursuing a career in criminal justice, D'Amato and the family said in a statement.

"Our daughter was a lot of things — including a loving daughter, sister, aunt, godmother, an incredible teammate, great friend," said her mother, Dianne Valiante. "What she was not by all accounts was someone who had reason to take her own life."