Signing my log book

God didn't operate a truck...so His rules aren't the question...however what God did say:

Now let us return from the Religion thread to the log book thread!

 

Oh Diesel Bear,

§395.13 Drivers declared out of service. (a) Authority to declare drivers Out of Service. Every special agent of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (as defined in Appendix B to this subchapter) is authorized to declare a driver out of service and to notify the motor carrier of that declaration, upon finding at the time and place of examination that the driver has violated the out of service criteria as set forth in paragraph (b) of this section.
(b) Out of Service criteria. (1) No driver shall drive after being on duty in excess of the maximum periods permitted by this part.
(b)(2) No driver required to maintain a record of duty status under §395.8 or §395.15 of this part shall fail to have a record of duty status current on the day of examination and for the prior 7 consecutive days.

(b)(3) Exception. A driver failing only to have possession of a record of duty status current on the day of examination and the prior day, but has completed records of duty status up to that time (previous 6 days), will be given the opportunity to make the duty status record current.

(c) Responsibilities of motor carriers. (1) No motor carrier shall:
(c)(1)(i) Require or permit a driver who has been declared out of service to operate a commercial motor vehicle until that driver may lawfully do so under the rules in this part.
(c)(1)(ii) Require a driver who has been declared out of service for failure to prepare a record of duty status to operate a commercial motor vehicle until that driver has been off duty for the appropriate number of consecutive hours required by this part and is in compliance with this section. The appropriate consecutive hours off-duty may include sleeper berth time.
(c)(2) A motor carrier shall complete the "Motor Carrier Certification of Action Taken" portion of the form MCS-63 (Driver-Vehicle Examination Report) and deliver the copy of the form either personally or by mail to the Division Administrator or State Director, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, at the address specified upon the form within 15 days following the date of examination. If the motor carrier mails the form, delivery is made on the date it is postmarked.
(d) Responsibilities of the driver. (1) No driver who has been declared out of service shall operate a commercial motor vehicle until that driver may lawfully do so under the rules of this Part.
(d)(2) No driver who has been declared out of service, for failing to prepare a record of duty status, shall operate a commercial motor vehicle until the driver has been off duty for the appropriate number of consecutive hours required by this part and is in compliance with this section.
(d)(3) A driver to whom a form has been tendered declaring the driver out of service shall within 24 hours thereafter deliver or mail the copy to a person or place designated by motor carrier to receive it.
(d)(4) §395.13 does not alter the hazardous materials requirements prescribed in §397.5 pertaining to attendance and surveillance of commercial motor vehicles.
[44 FR 34963, June 18, 1979, as amended at 47 FR 53392, Nov. 26, 1982; 51 FR 12622, Apr. 14, 1986; 53 FR 18058, May 19, 1988; 53 FR 38670, Sept. 30, 1988; 53 FR 47544, Nov. 23, 1988; 60 FR 38748, July 28, 1995; 68 FR 22516, April 28, 2003; 70 FR 50073, Aug. 25, 2005]

Take notice how the EXCEPTION covers both 395.8 & 395.15 ,but yet you still try to twist it! If you are two days or less behind you have to be given the chance to make it current. If you make it CURRENT,and you are LEGAL How can anyone write a ticket for not being current since the regs allowed you to catch up you are now CURRENT & LEGAL!

Oh yeah you don't sign the log until you are sure it is legal,and correct,because it is a Federal document,and if you are involved in a wreck,and it is a false log they will use your log as evidence against you,and they will hang you. When you get to court it will be the same as any legal document that you sign,or don't. So you pre trip at 0800 & you sign all entries are correct. Now you don't touch the log until 1600,and you have a wreck your going to be eaten alive ,because you signed it. The lawyer will tell the jury here is exhibit A which the driver signed as true,and correct yet we have no idea what that is! I know you will make the log current before the cops & Dot get there. What if you are hurt,or worse,and can't. The record will stand. You are better off to have no log book,than a false one!

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SOMETIMES THE TRASH WE SEEK TO REMOVE IS IN THE MIRROR!

So then what have we learned?

1. If you are two days or less behind in you log the attending officer HAS to give you the chance to make your book current. This is not open to interpretation by the officer .HE HAS TO. IF you are legal,and he writes you a citation for not being current when he stopped you.TAKE IT TO COURT YOU MIGHT BE SURPRISED. NO TIME TO COME BACK,AND FIGHT IT THEY ARE HOPING YOU DON'T!

2.Never ever sign your log book ahead of time.Regardless of what a ticket writing cop will tell you of course he is going to write as many tickets as he can,and hope most stick. Your book is a federal document why would they have you put a signature on it if it didn't matter. If you sign it true ,and correct in the beginning you lose your legal right to correct it once they look at it. Oh I'm sorry I made a mistake I'm sorry I need to correct it please. Not if you sign it true ,and correct in the start of your duty.

3. If you end up in an serious accident you will end up in a FEDERAL COURT not a state court,and your signature on the federal document will matter regardless of what some people will tell you.

4. Cops should stick to enforceing existing laws instead of twisting,and writing their own laws. This fact is your friend,because most are so full of themselves that they think they can. This is the stuff,a good lawyer spots ,and gets it thrown out.

5. Is your logbook behind,or are your actions behind? If you are not current,BUT you can make it current,and are LEGAL,and your actions were legal simply not documented what is the problem. Yes I know current to last change of duty,but if your actions are legal is what is most important. The logbook doesn't drive the truck you do. Your actions are what are important.

6. Its all about money. Look at the budget gaps some of the states have. THEY NEED MONEY,AND THEY WANT YOURS. Face it the DOT,and cops need to justify their job's by telling you how to do yours. Sad that its possible to get a $500.00 dollar log book fine ,or more for working as little as 15 minutes too much,but the rules are the rules,and common sense doesn't count when you need money to fill the state budget gap. I have seen cops moonlight as truckdrivers,and work an 8 hour shift as a cop,and then drive a truck for 8-10 hours here again common sense doesn't prevail TOO TIRED TO DRIVE IS TOO TIRED TOO DRIVE,or is it. Depends on who you are I guess.

7.How many cops ,or Dot have looked at your book ,and told you you are less than two days behind please make it current so we can see where you are with it? My guess is none. They hope you don't have a clue.

Oh yeah Jesus said to turn the other cheek,but he didn't say what to do after that!

 

Well good luck to you because obviously you still do not have a clue. Oh by the way, you don't go to federal court for an accident Einstein. The charges that police officer's in each State write are State charges. Some are mirrored after the federal regulation but as Police officer's from any State we don't write federal charges, it is State cherges. I guess your "super" lawyer failed to brief you on this. If US DOT or FMCSA writes you, you will be going to federal court I suppose. The only federal court I have been to is for a federal racketeering case, not your run of the mill truck violator. Good luck to you freedom, because the only thing you have gotten right so far is that you have the right to free speech and talk as much BS as you wish and try to muddy the regulations which are pretty clear. For some reason you think you can twist a law or regulation to do whatever you want. I'm glad the majority of driver's on the road are not a pompous arse like you and actually want to be in compliance. You'll have to let us know how your theory on log books work if you ever get audited by the fed's. For some reason, I think I already know the answer to that one.

P.S. I don't write a lot of tickets, so I could care less about generating revenue. I do inspections and make carriers fix their defects. When I get a pompous arse, that's when I start writing tickets. I try to work with the driver's the best I can. You see my old man and uncle used to run over the road, and I grew up doing this crap and could go back at anytime. So I understand fully both sides of this industry and see how it's changed in the last 30 years. I just hope you never get in a jam because you won't listen. Your wrong on all counts from your "interpretation" of log book rules for being current to signing it. It's pretty clear, it's in black and white for you to read. I could care less if someone comes to court to have a ticket heard. I could care less about writing tickets. However, whether you get a ticket or not, CSA 2010 will affect you if you get violations on your inspection report. For some reason, you still insist on spreading poison amongst driver's like any good truck stop lawyer or radio rambo. Unfortunately some poor sap, who doesn't know any better is going to listen to your non sense and get his arse in a sling. So my advice is this, if you don't know you should do what my old man told me many, many moons ago. "Keep thy mouth shut and look stupid or open thy mouth and let everyone know your stupid."

 

Post removed by Mastertech for not meeting the rules of this community.

 

:smt101:smt017:smt021:smt075

 

Don't go giving anyone any new ideas!!!

 

Now I have an excuse for DOT when I get caught running out of hours.

"Honestly, officer, I've been framed!!"

 

Years ago was climbing a hill in CA. Had been hearing on CB about CHP DOT writing tickets for non current logs. Sure enought, they were checking trucks at the top of the hill. As I was only going about 15 or 20 mph (300 fuel squeezer) I threw my logbook on the dog house and drew a line to the most current 15 minute mark.
They had me to pull over and the DOT man asked for my logbook. He looked and saw the perfectly ruler drawn lines, then a little bit squiggly line for the past couple of hours. He started grinning, looked at me, I pointed down the hill, he laughed and handed me the logbook said have a good day!

 

I never used to get all excited about logbook violations except for the blatantly false ones (200 miles in 2 hours). In NC our OOS were strictly civil ,which meant in my YOS, they had to be paid prior to appeal (no court unless you appealed the first appeal decision and then it was held in Raleigh), long story short, I hardly ever wrote a court citation cause I hated going to court. As for the revenue that didn't matter to me either.