What are the things that are illegal to have in the truck?

Anything that indicates free and independent thought, including books not prescribed by either the company or the state, independent newspapers, or any news source (written or audio) that isn't Fox "News".

 

You STILL have 4th amendment rights as a trucker and CAN decline a search until they get a warrant. A decent company will also insist on a warrant. ###### if I'm gonna let some jack-booted thug toss my sleeper (the only "Home" I have) without a warrant.

They have authority to inspect the interior DRIVING PORTION of the truck. That means your dash lights, your e-logs, your seatbelts, lights, horns, etc.

They DO NOT have carte blanche to search your sleeper or bring a dog into your truck. They can bring a dog IN your truck if it alerts outside. (Which half the time is a trained response having nothing to do with the dog actually sniffing anything.). And even THEN, they have to get a warrant to search the sleeper or the permission of your company. (The owners of the truck).

All that having been said, DON'T carry a gun on your truck if you're going to be in MA, NJ, MD or NYC. You will get serious jail time. DO NOT do it.

Also, please, don't be stupid and carry everclear or some such nonsense in your side-boxes (Which are fair game).

You can't have alcohol on your truck AT ALL. I have known guys that got put OOS for having NON-alcoholic dayquil on their dash. Because, I'm sorry, cops aren't known for their wonderful brains, common sense, etc.

Just kiss their butts. It's humiliating, but it makes the day a lot easier. You don't have to MEAN it, you just have to ACT like you mean it. You can laugh at them the rest of the day.

 

Actually because of the California V Carney decision by SCOTUS and several other opinions a cop does NOT need a warrant to search a vehicle provided said cop has probable cause to believe there is anything illegal in the vehicle. There are several exceptions to the 4th amendment as defined by the courts. I am not an attorney but I recommend any trucker that wants to test this read this website VERY carefully.

http://criminal.findlaw.com/crimina...tely-search-my-vehicle-without-a-warrant.html

 

I would add to this list a radar detector (bird dog) and any passenger not approved by the authority holder to be in the vehicle.

 

Know if that applies to while parked, too? Or only while moving?

 

Authorities can enter your sleeper, maybe not for a search, but they can enter and 'measure' the sleeper size to make sure it it a legal sized sleeper. If they happen to see something else in there that is illegal , well that's how they get around the warrant requirement

 

I don't know about being parked, but those 2 things are unlawful per FMCSA regulations while on the roads. I would imagine the company who owns or holds the authority would not want them at anytime.

 

Well, that's annoying....

 

No! Your leaving a false idea here. Yes they can measure, but with probable cause a cop can enter any vehicle with the intent to search, they don't need any excuses.

 

There is another problem with cops using this measuring argument to get around probable cause/warrant situations. A good attorney using the fruit of a poison tree argument might get any contraband found this way excluded in court later. This is one reason cops in most situations have been trained to be VERY careful with searches.