This is why ELD's are going into effect.

The driver that crashed into Tracy Morgan's limo was on elogs and compliant with the HOS.

Bottom line, the legal system is supposed to view everybody equally, with no special treatment either way. It shouldn't have different standards based upon occupation, and it pisses me off that the ONLY occupation that seems to believe there IS a double standard is one filled with unskilled blue collar dupes. You say "every truck driver knows about the hours of service" as an excuse for allowing such a double standard, but the politicians and bureaucrats WROTE the law, and they are not held to a higher standard. The police ENFORCE the law, and they do not face additional charges when they violate the law. Prosecutors and defense attorneys also are VERY familiar with the law, and they too are immune from this higher standard you don't mind seeing for truck drivers. Not even the judges who sit there determining the fate of those who allegedly broke the law are held to any higher standard. In most cases, the standard to which they are held is much lower, meaning they can violate MORE laws with FEWER charges, or like the politicians, completely exempt themselves from the laws they pass. Sure, they may lose their professional credentials...might lose their law license, disbarred, or lose their next election...but they aren't sitting in prison for an extended period of time simply because their job assumes an expanded knowledge of the law beyond that of the average person. There shouldn't be a double standard. We have ONE justice system that should be applied EQUALLY to ALL, without regard to occupation, gender, race, religion, etc. They say "justice is blind", but that simply cannot be true when double standards exist. There should be no "higher standard" for the professional driver, as there should be no "lower standard" for politicians, lawyers, cops, and judges. If he blatantly violates the regulations governing this industry, yank his credentials...DQ his CDL so that he can't drive commercially. THAT would be appropriate. Charging him with ridiculous criminal charges as a result of something somebody else did (or failed to do) is beyond reasonable. Yes, people died...and it sucks for those people and their families...but again I ask "Why didn't anyone attempt to wake him up when traffic started moving again?" How long was he sitting there? With traffic stopped dead with the road shut down, you can't always move it to the shoulder. Besides, doing that would block access for emergency vehicles trying to use the shoulder to reach the scene. Was traffic stopped for 3, 6, 10 hours? WHO WOULDN'T get bored and decide to catch a quick nap, not knowing how much longer it'd be shut down? When the road is opened, it usually takes a while for the backup to clear and traffic to get back up to speed...ESPECIALLY when there is still a travel lane blocked. It amazes me that this all happened with him sitting in the travel lane AND nobody thought to check on him.

 

Someone gets it finally ^^^^- Post of the thread- Agree 100%........

These guys (Drivers commenting here) Been brainwashed since day 1 to think truckers should accept any and all disciplinary action- Guilty or not.

I have a pretty good example here to support Pedigree bulldogs post-

I live within 50 miles of a fairly large Oil Refinery-
in 2010- There was an explosion due to human error which caused 1 employee to lose his life and injured several others-

the guy responsible for the explosion was working a double shift-(16 hours) Fatigue set in and did something in the nature of moving a valve on a steamline which caused a tank to explode.

As this employee was questioned and given time off- NO criminal charges were even thought of- it was purely accidental-
Not only was he NOT fired- But was payed with Time Off for emotional distress-before returning to work.

Case in point here- As agreed with Pedigree's post- This Driver from Georgia should Never be scrutinized Nor Charged with anything other than log Violations and/or license suspension etc.

Like I say- These Truck Drivers say the dumbest things in regard to "Situations" That occur in this line of work........Drivers are Not held accountable on a "Higher" Level than laws are written

 

SMH

Poor poor poor truck drivers. The only trade where they're held to unrealistic standards. That would be laughable if it wasn't so wrong.

But, at least I'm starting to understand now why the trade has gone to the dogs given the prevailing attitude shift.

 

Name another career that carries stiffer CRIMINAL penalties just for trying to do your job and screwing up than what an "ordinary" person would face in a similar circumstance? I'm not talking professional penalties (disbarment, license revokation, etc...) within the industry, but actual lock-him-up-and-throw-away-the-key criminal charges.

If a barber shaves you a little close, does he get charged with assault for knicking you with the blade causing you to bleed a little? No.

If a hardware store clerk mixes up a can of paint for you and fails to secure the lid, and it spills inside your car on the way home, is he charged with vandalism for ruining your car's interior? No.

If a plumber cuts a few corners and the cheaper fittings he used leak and cause a mold issue and your family gets sick, will he face criminal charges? No.

In each case, you have a civil case against the "professional" that should have known better. Insurance pays whatever claim arises...or if they don't have insurance, they pay it out of pocket. They DON'T have to worry about doing hard time as a result of a momentary lapse of attention or an incident where they should've known better. Even though people got hurt or property was damaged in the process, there was no crime alleged. Why? Lack of intent. The barber didn't set out to knick your chin. The hardware store clerk didn't try to spill the paint in your car. The plumber wasn't trying to get your family sick. Likewise the truck driver didn't want to see those people killed. There was no intent to do harm in his actions, and again, without knowing how long traffic had been stopped or how long he had been sitting there with the road shut down, you can't be certain a similar situation wouldn't happen to you! Roll up on a scene where traffic is stopped for as far as you can see, after an hour not moving an inch, you shut off the truck...it's going to be a while. Another hour rolls by...and another...and another. Still just sitting there twiddling your thumbs. Another hour goes by and you're bored out of your mind. You've already called everyone you want to talk to. Another hour goes by and your eyes are getting heavy, so you figure on grabbing a quick power nap so you'll at least be awake enough to roll to the next truck stop when traffic clears. SLAM! Traffic started rolling again 15 minutes after you closed your eyes, and nobody thought to knock on your cab or blow their horn to make sure you were awake. Now you've been rear ended by a bus. People are dead, and you're facing hard time in prison. Does that seem right to you? Would you argue for the same criminal charges if it were grandpa & grandma in their big-### diesel pusher RV? Equal protection under the law. There shouldn't be different standards for different people dependent upon their occupation.

 

The aviation industry. If a pilot screws up and the end result is an incident or accident where there are injuries and/or fatalities the pilot(s) are in some circumstances are prosecuted and incarcerated . This is especially true in Asian countries (Taiwan,China,Japan, Singapore just to name a few come to mind) where evidence shows gross negligence on the flight crew’s part.

 

Your posts are usually factual and provide well-researched and accurate information. These aren't even close.

 

We're not talking some 3rd world country with a biased criminal justice system, but rather here in America where one is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty and there is (allegedly) equal justice for all.

 

Glad you think there ought to be 2 criminal justice systems...one for ordinary folk, and a much stricter one reserved for truck drivers.

 

Again, you've gone off the rails. When you find anything that I have posted that remotely equates what you are suggesting please feel free to link to that. Otherwise your anecdotes are just whiny snivelling.

 

Forget about not4hire.....I Like him,But sometimes he doesn't know how to think right.