Falling Asleep Behind the Wheel: Tracy Morgan Hit by Drowsy Truck Driver

Driving while drowsy is a common problem in the commercial trucking industry that has been the subject of recent rest rule changes. But in trucking, not only does time equal money, so do miles. The recent Tracy Morgan crash involving a Wal-Mart trucker has put a national spotlight on this problem. 

On June 7, at 1 AM, Wal-Mart trucker Kevin Roper rear-ended the bus limousine that Tracy Morgan and his companions were riding in. They had been returning to New York from a Delaware show. After the trucker hit the limousine Morgan was in, it overturned, causing secondary impacts with five other cars on the New Jersey Turnpike. One companion, “Jimmy Mack” McNair was killed, and Morgan and the others suffered broken bones and other injuries. Roper has been charged with vehicular homicide, assault, and reckless driving. Wal-Mart suspended Roper pending the outcome of the investigation.

According to a federal preliminary report detailing the truck’s electronic driver log, Roper was speeding 20 miles over the speed limit and had not slept for over 24 hours. A National Transportation Safety Board report detailing the electronic driver log in the truck showed Roper had been driving 9 hours and 37 minutes in his shift prior to the accident. He had worked 13 hours and 32 minutes of duty time, which is under the 14 hours duty time maximum for commercial truckers. 

In a complaint Morgan filed against Wal-Mart, Roper had been commuting over 700 miles from his home in Jonesboro, Georgia to the Wal-Mart distribution center in Smyrna, Delaware. The complaint states there were closer Wal-Mart facilities that Roper could have been assigned to and that Wal-Mart should have known Roper had not slept for 24 hours. The complaint also alleges the automatic braking system, which would have slowed the truck, did not activate. Morgan and the others are seeking compensatory and punitive damages.

The Fight for Public Safety

Just last summer, Congress acted to reform rules for trucker work hours. It lowered the maximum workweek to 70 hours, down from 82 hours. It also mandated an 11-hour driving maximum per day. Once a trucker reaches the 70 hour maximum, there must be a consecutive 34-hour rest period. The rest period must include two periods between 1 AM and 5 PM. The new rules also require a 30-minute break during the first 8 hours of a shift. The trucking industry and some legislators are trying to freeze the new regulations pending further studies and hope to reverse the regulations back to the old requirements. 

Miles Mean Money: A Dangerous Philosophy

Drowsy driving is one of the leading causes of collisions and injuries on the road. Two studies published in 1997 and 2001 show that sleep-deprivation can impair driving ability as much as or more than alcohol consumption. And, it is no secret that commercial drivers are notorious for driving on very little sleep. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration found that truckers averaged less than five hours of sleep, much less than the 7-8 hours of sleep needed to perform best. As a result, the National Transportation Safety Board reported that likely more than half of the trucker deaths are caused by drowsy driving, and for every trucker killed, another three to four people are killed. In fact, Parents Against Tired Truckers and other organizations reported that truck crashes are responsible for 4,000 deaths and injuries caused to100,000 more annually. These troubling statistics show that if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time, the consequences of being hit by these massive machines could be devastating. Anyone on the road could find themselves impacted by sleep-deprived truckers. 

Navigating the legal system after this type of collision might be a scary thought, but our Michigan personal injury attorneys have extensive experience dealing with trucking companies and helping crash victims recover for their losses. If you or someone you love has been involved in a collision with a trucker, contact our Detroit personal injury law office at 1-800-638-6722.