Sommerset, KY Trucker held $3 Million Bail

[Shaun]

Just for Papa G -- leave a note in your truck stops for those truckers to slow down and pay attention PLEASE. We lost another cop yesterday and this one could have been prevented

http://www.newschannel5.com/content/news/6062.asp

[NRAJOE]

Dam.....

[Stopper]

Man I know truckers need to make a living but for the love of GOD get a grip. I just got back from driving from KS to Chilicothie, Ohio and then to Elizabethtown, KY and back. Alot of the truckers don't give a fat rats arss about any other traffic on the road except other truckers. IMHO, of course.

Seems like you get east of St. Louis and all heck breaks loose - truckers everywhere.

[PAPA G]

ashame about the cop, she was pretty.

but i saw no mention of where the trucker is from, just that he drove for an Oklahoma Company.

[Shaun]

Here is more

Police identified the driver of the tractor-trailer as James Fitzgerald Jr., 25, of Somerset, Ky., and his passenger as Barbi Maupin, 30, also of Somerset. Both were taken to Summit Medical Center with minor injuries. A blood sample was taken from Fitzgerald, who stopped after the crash, Aaron said.

The cause of the crash was still under investigation late last night, and eastbound interstate lanes remained closed for hours as traffic was diverted.

Charges were pending, police said, and an investigator from the Davidson County district attorney general's office was on the scene assisting police.

On July 1, a ''move-over'' law went into effect, requiring motorists to change lanes to avoid emergency vehicles or to slow down if moving over was not possible. The penalty for not doing so is a $50 fine. The law was intended to make roads safer for troopers, police, ambulance personnel and other emergency workers.

''I expect the legislature was trying to avoid tragedies like this when that law was put into place,'' Serpas said.

Metro Officer Candace Ripp was killed in 2001 when hit on Ellington Parkway, where she was investigating a traffic accident. Another officer, Chuck Head Jr., was seriously injured when he was hit in 1995 on Interstate 65, where he was using a radar gun to get traffic to slow down.

Also, three state troopers recently died because of motorists not slowing down or moving over, including Trooper John Mann in Nashville in 2001, state Safety Department spokeswoman Beth Denton said.

Last year, 13 of 145 law-enforcement deaths in the nation occurred when officers were struck by a vehicle, said Bruce Mendelsohn, spokesman for the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.

[toolman]

As a professional truck driver, I generally get pretty defensive when I see stuff like this but this flake needs to rot in jail. FWIW, overall the trucking industry has the best safety rating around but, just like plane crashes, truck accidents are highly visible. The problem is being compounded by the fact that there aren't enough drivers for all of the freight that needs to moved so companies are hiring more and more young drivers. Most are just out of driving school and don't have the right attitude for handling an 80,000 lb. truck. That coupled with additional distractions like cell phones, laptops, etc. that are all too common today and this kind of stuff happens. This is only getting worse due to the ever-increasing number of vehicles on the road. The trucking business is almost as complex as the gun control issue and, as usual, the lawmakers are looking to all the wrong people for solutions.

[Shaun]

The area where this happened has a 55mph speed limit and he was doing 80 -- Toolman since I drove I know the stresses placed on drivers but this was outright stupidity -not blaming the industry just making light of the incident and why speed control is just as important as making room for your local Law Enforcement on the side of the road.

[toolman]

Shaun, I totally agree with you and was not trying to make excuses for anyone. This young man and others like him (read: ME generation), are becoming more common in the trucking industry due to increased driver demand. Unfortunately, it is too easy for this type to get a license and they do not have the necessary mental attitude for such a demanding and potentially dangerous job. If you've driven before then you know that it is mentally demanding and requires constant concentration on the job at hand. Go walk around the mall for an hour or so and picture the young guys you see driving a 80,000 lb truck-scary, huh? This was a tragedy that never should've happened and I am truly sorry for this officers' family.

[Shaun]

Update on the case

It appears a truck driver accused of hitting and killing a Metro police officer earlier this week used a loophole to obtain a license in Kentucky to drive trucks.



The driver, James Fitzgerald, Jr., has more than 50 violations.

His driving record was so bad that he couldn't get a license in Kentucky, so he went to Missouri to get one. Fitzgerald then used that license to get a truck driving license in Kentucky, police said.

A cursory background check missed several outstanding warrants and an in-depth check wasn't scheduled for another two weeks.

Kentucky officials said they’re working to close the loopholes in the system.

Fitzgerald was charged with vehicular homicide in the death of Officer Christy Dedman and vehicular assault for hitting the stranded motorist Dedman was helping on the side of the interstate.