The engineer is also issued a booklet with block locations and speed limits. He would have had to turn the “3’ in the booklet into an “8”. Also note that the maximum speed limit for passenger trains (without cab signals and not on the Northeast Corridor) as delineated by the FRA in 1982 is 79 mph.
Well, then it could be a criminal act realized with the help of someone’s negligence. I have a niece who is an Amtrak engineer. I should ask her what the standard practice is.