On Jan 31st, in what was very nearly a tragic accident, a police cruiser was struck by a truck when the cruiser made a U-turn that put it directly into the truck’s path. The driver of the cruiser, was traveling southbound when he that noticed a car traveling in the other direction was exceeding the speed limit. He flipped on his lights and did a U-turn, but allegedly didn’t see the truck coming down the road.
A crash report filed by the Maine State Police stated that the officer failed to yield to the right of way and was then struck by the truck. The officer was knocked unconscious and his cruiser was totaled but he himself only suffered minor injuries. The driver of the truck suffered whiplash and his truck ran off the road into a stand of small trees but was not badly damaged. The driver has not yet been able to return to work and, according to his attorney, despite police originally reporting that he was uninjured, “the full extent of his injuries is not known.”
Even though he was clearly at fault for the crash, no criminal charges, traffic citations, or reprimands of any kind have been issued to the police officer.
“I don’t see this as an illegal U-turn,” Deputy Attorney General William Stokes said in a statement. “I also looked at the failure to yield, and that doesn’t really apply, either. I don’t see that there’s any traffic violation or infraction.”
Because there was no legal reason why the officer should not have made a U-turn, the case comes down to a civil standard, involving insurance and who was liable for the crash.
Next Story: Trucking Has Best January In 5 Years
Source: pressherald
stephen says
so said. just the other day i was passed in maryland on I70 by a unmarked cop at vvery high speed. i was not even able to tell my other truck in front of me he was a cop before he had blown by both of us. abot 2 miles down the road on the west bound side a full grown pulled him as i passed i saw him show his badget . in the mirror i saw the full grown wave and the unmark take off again. cops let cops get away with everything
Jason says
Ridiculous. Just goes to show LEO’s are above the law and the truck driver is always at fault. I’m seriously considering a dash cam now! And one more question how do you miss something thats 13’6″ high 102″ wide 65ft long and weighs 80,000lbs. Guess they dont test vision in Maine either
John Burleson says
DashCam.com. Or something like that. I love ’em and wish they came with a sticker, “Smile for my camera!” On a more serious note, my heart goes out to the trucker and the officer involved. The driver didn’t have time to react, and officers just like him protect my family when I’m on the road. I had a full-groan pull a similar stunt on me on I-10 and I just missed him. It’s unfortunate, but when the adrenalin kicks in, people do stupid things–even officers (from personal experience). Good rule of thumb is to do whatever it takes to stay at least 200 feet away from officers. We are, in the final analysis, on the same side: we both want the idiots off the road.
John Burleson
Gordon says
I now have a dash cam and it has captured some un real stuff that is done by stupid drivers including LEO’s. I know of a driver that was going to get ticketed for bypassing the scale. He showed the cop he did cross the scale including the two other trucks he pulled over. They are not only a good weapon against crooked or mis informed leo’s it can reduce your insurance cost and be your best friend in court if someone sues you for an accident you not at fault for. Just don’t go cheap and spend the $200 bucks average. .
As far a not getting a ticket he probably got promoted and 30 days off with pay.
fireant says
This happens a lot all over the U.S. and I was lucky to hard break saving a near accident maybe 6 times in 23 years. One time I was trucking on I-95 heading Northbound around the 6 mile marker. It was raining hard and this car passed me at a high rate of of speed. This full blown bear was traveling Southbound and on came his lights and he did what was to be a flip in the medium. 1/2 way in the medium his patrol got stuck up to the doors in mud and he wasn’t going anywhere for a long time. I witnessed this 1st hand and laughed till I cried. Yes the talk on the C.B. radio was full of excitement for miles but 95% of those drivers did not witness the actual event. Thanks for the reminder and another laugh for remembrance. Hope the wintery weather ends soon for all of our Truck Drivers across America.
merlinn says
“When those who enforce the laws. break the laws, there are no laws.”
detroit diesel says
Sometimes cops have to do things outside of the norm but they have to be intelligent about it also.
Stan says
How can NO ONE be at fault? What if it was a car that he pulled out in front of and someone died, still not the cops fault?
This stuff is getting a bit ridiculous.
J. Carter says
Yeah, I’m kind of here, too. How can “Nobody” be at fault? Doesn’t make a ton of sense, does it?
But then again, we’re talking about a cop and about the government. The Rodney King incident had to cause a major riot in Los Angeles before police agreed that they were culpable for the beating.
Police can do no wrong, not at least in the public eye they can’t. Even if they are caught red-handed on video camera, some lawyer will appear, his upper lip poked out, and explain to us “uneducated about the law” types, that the officer couldn’t have done wrong, and here is the list of gobbledegook reasons why the lawyer is right.
I don’t trust the police. I put absolutely no faith in them. A good number of them are armed thugs who can quite literally, get away with murder.
Bob says
Yep, cops are above it all and can get away with murder, it’s all about $ for them and filling a daily ticket or warning quota. The Courts love their arrogant cops too. It pays the bills.
benzobad says
Anytime anyone pulls into another’s right of way …and especially if there’s a collision, the offender is at fault. There may not have been a no U-turn posted and O.P. did not say if this was interstate or two lane. If it was interstate and the cop used an official business u-turn, then he still pulled into oncoming traffic’s right of way. The trick then is to be professional enough about it not to let emotion of the chase get in the way and get tunnel vision. This gets cop’s killed every day and can get us as professional driver’s also when we don’t get the big picture. Were held to a higher standard and police officers should be held to the same high standard of care. He’s at fault , turning the lights on doesn’t make a Peterbilt disappear in thin air . He was no David “COP”perfield magician.
jim says
as i have always said, cops are the biggest violators of motor vehicle laws in this country, hopefully the truck drivers attorney will press this issue beyond the states attorney general. if not then i bet dollars to doughnuts that in the civil proceedings they will end up blaming the trucker…..
onceOTR says
Something like this happened to me in Nashville the officer came across 3 lanes of traffic and hit the truck that I was about to pass. Bobtailing at the time on a rainy morning I just slid while I dodged the 4wheelers breaking every where. I caught the back corner of the trailer and lucky I did it was better then taking out one of the many cars sliding across the interstate. Been laid up for over a year now and will most likely never return to OTR and I still have no idea who was blamed for the incident.
Ron says
(Even though he was clearly at fault for the crash, no criminal charges, traffic citations, or reprimands of any kind have been issued to the police officer.
“I don’t see this as an illegal U-turn,” Deputy Attorney General William Stokes said in a statement. “I also looked at the failure to yield, and that doesn’t really apply, either. I don’t see that there’s any traffic violation or infraction.)
Would this be the same outcome if the roles were changed??? I am sure we all know the truth to this question.
BuckeyeJim says
Too bad it wasn’t in Ohio. the troopers here are not shy about giving a ticket to other officers when they do some thing stupid like that.
mike says
Maine is the perfect State.They have D.O.T parties at the weigh station on the turnpike just about every day in order to put us unsafe truck drivers out of service .The trucks we drive,oh my they are falling apart, and to quote a word from some one in Maine”A big truck killed my child”. Come to find out the Aunt of the child leaned forward to get something the child dropped and ran into the rear of the truck doing 70 in a 55 zone at the time. The aunt survived the child was killed ,she said that if the truck wasn’t on the roadway she wouldn’t have hit it. The driver was charged with the accident but later got the charge reversed. The Father started an orginization called crash,its an acronym for ( can’t remember)
Michael says
Hi guys! I like what Mr.John Burleson said: “we both want idiots off the road!” I’ve been trailer truckin’ for 33 years over the road now and we all see alot of crazy stuff going on.I always felt that I should write a book called “Truckin’…then and Now!” A lot of us so called “old school drivers” are sick and tired of the “big radios and cursing and all the other BS” these days also. We all try to watch everything and think for the other guy next to us and our little 4-wheeler friends also but, Cops are doing the same thing and we have all said it on the 2-way: “He’s flipin’ out and Full-grown!” Trucker’s these days do some pretty stupid things also “The New Breed One’s.” Yea, a dash-cam would work in court these days also-good idea! I’m turning 61 and out of work these days and listening to some of these stories makes me wonder if I even want to get back out there? Yea-It’s in our blood! Thanks for the input fellas and stay Safe out there!See ya’ Michael.
Jeff says
Most law enforcement agencies do not issue traffic citations unless there are addtional charges above traffic infractions. That does not mean that the officer will not be held accountable within his department. Penalties can involve everything from written reprimands, suspensions, and even termination depending on the severity of the incident and past violations.
Law enforcement agencies realize that officers who are driving in the performance of their duties can face challenging situations beyond that of the normal driving public. I would be shocked if the officer is not held accountable. Just not in the same manner has you and I.
Ron says
I haven’t had a driver’s license since 2006 due to an accident in Ohio. The state I live in says I can have it reinstated in 2007. Ohio State Highway Patrol,and the Ohio Dept of Public Safety has refused my state every year to allow reinstatement of my license to even drive a car,let alone get my CDL reinstated. According to the letter from the Ohio State Highway Patrol to my state,an theirs,and I quote “he is a potential danger to others on the public roads”. To get reinstated I would have to go to court in Ohio,and prove I was not responsible for the accident. Yea Right !You can’t fight dishonest people who work for the state. They have friends in high places…like crooked judges to back up their claims againt you…even if it’s lie. I agree with Merlinn in his post.t’s now 2013,and Ohio is still refusing my reinstatement. attorney tell me it’s now worth the time,and money. I would have to have an Ohio attorney,and they don’t want to go up against their own state government. ” innocent until proven guilty”.? That don’t work in the court system…to many people have agendas,and will lie.
mike says
And the police wonder why we don’t trust our law enforcement ? They can enforce the law but not required to obey it and the da won’t hold police responsible for their actions like the rest of us. I have seen off duty police intoxicated causing accidents and being let go with no citations or arrested.