Land Line Magazine: The Business Magazine for Professional Truckers
CVSA Roadcheck 2012 announced for June 5 to 7....
CVSA Roadcheck 2012 announced for June 5 to 7....
Get your ducks lined up!
- Thread starter xmudman
- Start date
These annual events have never meant anything different for Diane and me. We've seen the scales more active but have never been pulled in for an inspection while the blitz is on that I recall. And if you are pulled in, would it be any different than any other roadside inspection you might receive?
the_hungaria
Active Expediter
Don't know if anyone noticed this yet, but couple years ago us drivers only used to be "harassed" right around DOT days. Now, with this economy, there are random days that random states decide to be out everywhere for that day. And I mean everywhere they can.
Difference is if you get pulled in it's pretty much an automatic level 1. they'll spend the 45-60 minutes on you. As said, just have a nice truck and paperwork AT ALL TIMES, and you'll be fine.
Funny thing is, I'm always ready for the DOT days, and I roll through the scales praying they pull me in so I can stick it in their face and say booyah b!tches! but it never happens.
When you try to avoid them it does, but never when you want them to do it lol...
Difference is if you get pulled in it's pretty much an automatic level 1. they'll spend the 45-60 minutes on you. As said, just have a nice truck and paperwork AT ALL TIMES, and you'll be fine.
Funny thing is, I'm always ready for the DOT days, and I roll through the scales praying they pull me in so I can stick it in their face and say booyah b!tches! but it never happens.
When you try to avoid them it does, but never when you want them to do it lol...
BigCat
Expert Expediter
paullud
Veteran Expediter
It is different in my view, it is the ultimate in the government trampling our rights. They are actively saying that they don't care about our rights and making a big show of it, I find it very disrespectful. If drivers decided to park their trucks in protest instead it would cost companies millions and we might have a better chance of stopping the garbage that is going on.
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paullud
Veteran Expediter
Good thinking there, I'm going to need you to put yellow stars on all your clothing and everything will be fine. I'm also going to need you to do some chores for me for no pay, as long as you don't try to leave everything will be fine. If you do try to leave I will hunt my property down and beat you in front of the other slaves to make an example. Your type of thinking is exactly why we continue to lose rights as drivers and as Americans, maybe instead of ruining this country you might be happier in a ready made country like China, Russia, or Iran.
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I agree with you that the government is gradually and increasingly erroding our rights and the founding fathers would not recognize today the country they founded two centuries ago. But in the case of an annual truck inspection blitz, what rights are being violated? In what way is it disrespectful?
tenntrucker
Expert Expediter
AMonger
Veteran Expediter
Any time you are stopped absent probable cause to believe that something is wrong with you, your vehicle, or your load, or anytime your logbook is examined, the 4th and 5th amendments are being trampled.
Kristi
Active Expediter
Why pull all ur vehicles? Why lose out on any type of income for u or ur drivers for 2 - 3 days? If ur drivers are doing their pre trips, running clean logs and have the proper paperwork what is there to worry about?
Like was said earlier what is any different about this "blitz" than any other time? A level 1 is a level 1. Just because its more likely to happen during this time doesn't make it any less likely to happen after the "blitz". IMHO unsafe vehicles and drivers should be fined or taken off the road.
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Kristi
Active Expediter
In my last post I didn't mean to imply that ur vehicles or drivers are unsafe. I just re read that and realized that that's how that came across. So again that was not what I was implying. It was an after thought of what I had said.
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AMonger
Veteran Expediter
That was all very interesting, and I agree that the form and others like it are ridiculous. If you refuse to either fill out or hand over a log book on either 4th or 5th amendment grounds--even if you're completely right--your trip is going to come to an end. Three things make this unconstitutional foolishness work: their guns, their audacity, and our complicity, as evidenced in Mr. Klepper's column.
First, in addition to what he said about the right to remain silent, SCOTUS has also ruled that the 5th amendment applies in every case in which a penalty may apply. I suppose I can digg the reference up if you insist. Second, it's not just the 5th amendment that applies here, but also the 4th, which guarantees the security of my person, papers, and effects, all of which are violated if the government may stop me without probable cause (my person), demand my logbook and supporting documents (papers), and/or search my truck, even the cab portion, without a warrant (my effects). Additionally, SCOTUS has ruled that inherent in the freedom of speech is the freedom of not speaking against one's will (the case had something to do with some businessman being required to put up some sign), so any requirement to even full out a logbook, let alone have it used against you, is suspect.
Finally, Mr. Klepper cites the PATRIOT Act as granting the government additional powers to search or trucks and effects. Well, I have some citations of my own:
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
Now, we're very fortunate that the Bill of Rights is written in English, and I think all of us speak and read some form of it, though I sometimes have trouble identifying what form of English about a dozen frequent post-ers are using. And I happen to speak it substantially better than most. Though the Bill of Rights was written over two centuries ago, it doesn't take a whole lot of brain power to understand it. That being the case, at least have the integrity to admit that the current HOS violate the Bill of Rights, and that if you agree with how they're enforced, that you're advocating exceptions to it.
ebsprintin
Veteran Expediter
I have never seen a driver doing daily pretrip inspections that are the equivalent of a level one inspection. But lets just say you do that kind of inspection everyday. Remember the last time you turned on your headlights at night, and they didn't work eventhough they did during the pretrip inspection? Springs and brake pads crack, hoses and tires get cut (electrical stuff is even trickier), and by the nature of the beast, you are not going to notice those things until your next perfect pretrip inspection. Another nature of the beast is that the level one inspection is not done immediately after you have done your perfect inspection, it's done after you've exposed your vehicle to the rigors of the road. Sure, it's all gambling and good pretrips decrease the likelihood of problems during a level one inspection, but I prefer to save my luck for important things.
eb
PS--Next time you're dangling over the edge of a cliff, do you really want to be cursing yourself for wasting your luck on taunting a vehicle inspector?
eb
PS--Next time you're dangling over the edge of a cliff, do you really want to be cursing yourself for wasting your luck on taunting a vehicle inspector?
paullud
Veteran Expediter
I feel it is disrespectful because they are accusing us of being dangerous outlaws and decided we must be guilty of something based on the job we do. I would consider it to be an unreasonable search and that I am illegally detained because they decided they can do whatever they want. We are being treated as less than human since our rights are just taken.
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paullud
Veteran Expediter
For those that think that people who are against this abuse of power are trying to hide the fact that we run illegally I hope you understand how flawed that idea is. I do a pre and post trip, usually the outside items during pre trip and inside post trip but when I fuel I am checking chains, straps, tires, fire extinguisher level, and engine compartment during the trip as well. My truck is taken in for an "annual" DOT inspection every other month and PM's are done every 12k miles. There is no need for me to violate HOS because we run daylight hours and make plenty of money doing that. My company just held a mandatory safety meeting where the owner had our DOT compliance officer come in. We are far from any intervention thresholds but the owner takes safety seriously as his sweat, dreams, and money are riding on us doing our jobs.
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