How bad is 1 ticket, for hiring ?

[krell]

Hi,

I might be getting a ticket for "weaving" (lane control) for 2 points in NJ. I plan to plead not guilty, but the judge will probably find me guilty anyway, says the lawyer I spoke to.

Are there many companies that will refuse to hire me with a "weaving" ticket. I don't have any other tickets or accidents since I've been driving a TT, which is almost 2 years.


Thanks

[GMAN]

Any moving violation is not good when you drive a commercial vehicle. Most carriers will be able to get you approved with one moving violation, depending on the seriousness of the offense. It would be good if your lawyer could plead your offense down to a non-moving violation. Most decent lawyers can get it down to something that will not hurt your license. Any moving offense can limit your opportunities in this business. I would check with some recruiters who work for different carriers whom you are interested in working. We have a couple who frequent this forum.

[Snowman7]

Any moving violation is not good when you drive a commercial vehicle. Most carriers will be able to get you approved with one moving violation, depending on the seriousness of the offense. It would be good if your lawyer could plead your offense down to a non-moving violation. Most decent lawyers can get it down to something that will not hurt your license. Any moving offense can limit your opportunities in this business. I would check with some recruiters who work for different carriers whom you are interested in working. We have a couple who frequent this forum.

I agree I would definately try to amend the charges to something non driving.

(Sorry GMAN I forgot I'm supposed to warn you first before we agree on something!)

[Drew10]

Krell....your "lane control" citation is basically the same as ranchermans post just a few threads down from here.
Link: http://www.classadrivers.com/phpBB2/...ic.php?t=34954

Your citation is listed in the FMCSA that Im linking here also:
http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regul...ction_toc=1322
This is a serious violation regarding CDL holders. You should do what you have to, to have that citation downgraded to a lesser charge.
And...although it may or may not affect you getting hired, and as as CDL holder if you get anyone of the other serious violations within the time period listed in the FMCSA, it will earn you a license suspension for the time shown.
Try and get it downgraded.

[Windwalker]

Just a thought for you. The girl that caused the accident on the Bay Bridge could be considered as having been weaving. Read...

http://www.classadrivers.com/phpBB2/...=34995&start=0

...and now, a driver is dead. But, a charge of "FAILING TO OBEY TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES" also covers it, because the lane markings are TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES. However, it then becomes a "non-moving violation".

To my way of thinking, weaving could be considered more serious than speeding, because weaving might be thought of as driving while too sleepy to drive. Something that indicates you drive while fatigued means risking hundreds of thousands of dollars in insurance claims, and facing lawsuits as the result of an accident that could cost lives. I'm not in a position to hire anyone, but it's something I have thought of back when I was running my own truck. If I bought another truck, it would mean hiring a driver. What would I look at before I put him/her behind the wheel of my other truck. I've seen accidents that were definitely the result of speeding, but generally, speeding is exceeding the speed limit on the highway. Weaving would be a "potential HEAD-ON" looking for a place to happen. Especially when you didn't realize you were doing so. It suggests another CRETE IN FLORIDA that killed 5 people in a car between himself and a stopped school bus because he was too fatigued to drive.

A charge of FAILING TO OBEY TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES also covers speed limit signs, no parking signs, right turn only signs, etc. The fine will most likely be the same, but it's a non-moving violation. It does not suggest fatigue.

Take Gman's advice. Get it pleaded to something non-moving.

[krell]

Thanks for the replies. I found a violation like "FAILING TO OBEY TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES" on a NJ point website. I can try to get the prosecutor to give me that, with zero points attached. I'm getting lots of "don't knows" from attorneys I call and from clerks who answer the phone at the courthouse.

The attorneys tell me the violation may or may not be transferred over to my home state. That would be good, since it wouldn't go on my license then. But it "might" and "might not" be transferred. Meaning I have to wait and see if it appears on my MVR !!

The prosecutor may not allow me to plea bargain. May have to plead guilty or not guilty and get the judge's verdict. Even with a 2 pooint conviction, the 2 points and/or the conviction itself "may or may not" be transferred to my home state. Lots of vagueness.

This thing is really wearing me down. The hearing is next week.

Moral of the story : drive safe, don't get tickets.

Any other suggestions / ideas are welcome, of course.

Krell

[thebaldeagle655]

I am confused here, you "might" get a ticket? If you will tell us what happened we actually might be able to give a little bit more accurate advice

Not trying to be a smart alec, just trying to figure out what you are actually talking about. Did you get in a wreck? Did an officer observe you, stop you and question you? How do you have a hearing without knowing a charge?

Basically though, a "weaving" conviction will proably constitute an unsafe driving type charge to any insurance company and probalby hurt any chances of getting hired. Remember, it's not the trucking company that sets these hiring standards based on your driving record, it is the insurance company that has to pay out if you do have an accident!

[GMAN]

There are lawyers who work with truckers. Most of the time they can get something reduced or thrown out. Sometimes a lawyer can work with the court much easier than the defendent. Some of the legal referral services set up in TA or Petro truck stops. www.roadlaw.com is one. There is another that I can't recall.

[krell]

I am confused here, you "might" get a ticket? If you will tell us what happened we actually might be able to give a little bit more accurate advice

Not trying to be a smart alec, just trying to figure out what you are actually talking about. Did you get in a wreck? Did an officer observe you, stop you and question you? How do you have a hearing without knowing a charge?

Basically though, a "weaving" conviction will proably constitute an unsafe driving type charge to any insurance company and probalby hurt any chances of getting hired. Remember, it's not the trucking company that sets these hiring standards based on your driving record, it is the insurance company that has to pay out if you do have an accident!

I do have a ticket, and I might get convicted for the ticket, when I appear in court. No accident, just a ticket. A cop was following me and pulled me over. The ticket is for "weaving", in the remarks section, and the statute for the ticket mentions "unsafe lane change", etc.


Krell

[GMAN]

Perhaps you can elaborate more on the charge and ticket? Were you weaving? Were you changing lanes in an unsafe manner? Is there anything else mentioned on the ticket?

[krell]

Perhaps you can elaborate more on the charge and ticket? Were you weaving? Were you changing lanes in an unsafe manner? Is there anything else mentioned on the ticket?

The ticket has a lot of checkboxes for various offenses, none of which is checked off. In a category of "other" the officer wrote "weaving", and in a box for statute number, wrote 39:4-88b, which is, of course, for weaving, with verbiage about unsafe lane changes, in the NJ website for such things.

I do not think I was weaving much, if at all. I have noticed myself weaving slightly, when there are no cars around, just going a few inches over the line, but when in traffic, I keep it in the lane, of course.

The officer said I was "all over the road", which is bs, unless I was in some sort of trance and oblivious to things. There were 4 or 5 lanes going the same direction. He said I weaved into the leftmost lane for a while, then went all the way across 2 lanes to the right. Weaving into the leftmost lane is a nono, I agree, but moving 2 lanes to the right isn't such a big deal. How else do you move to the right???


Here's the problem, probably : He said I almost hit his cruiser at one point. That's when he decided to waste his time and pull me over.

I was pretty tired, and had actually pulled off to have a nap a few minutes before I got pulled over.

I didn't contradict the officer, thinking I would just get a warning, and also thinking that being polite and cooperative would be the best policy for me here. He had me rooting around for registration for a while. The truck had about 6 different registrations, but not the one he wanted. No ticket for that, though.

He noticed my hearing protection earmuffs in my duffelbag and asked if I wore them in the truck. I said "no". No ticket for that.

He grabbed my log book off the passenger seat without asking. The log book was current. No problem there.

He asked for my license and med card. All OK there, but he acted annoyed that mt med card was going to expire in a month.

There was another cop with him staring at me with a look of wrorry and fear. Mimicing me, perhaps? The NJ cops like to have 2 cops at every stop, I notice.

He said I was doing 65 - 70 in a 55. It's true, I was doing up to 68 mph, and it was a 55 zone. No ticket for that.


When I got pulled over I thought I would get a speeding ticket, not weaving.

He asked me if I were tired. I said "yes". He said I should pull over and rest if I get tired. I didn't tell him I had just done that a few minutes ago, thinking that would just "prove" I was too tired to drive.

I was at a "normal" level of tiredness, pretty maxed out but not nodding off. I wonder if he is lying about me almost hitting his car. Why would he lie? Don't know. Maybe they are picking on trucks lately, and he needs an excuse to pull them over???

But I still think I wasn't weaving significantly enough for a ticket. I may have gone into the left lane for a second or 2 as I was changing the radio station or inserting a cd, since there were no cars around. I check the mirrors for cars before I take my eyes off the road to do anything like that. And no, I wasn't changing lanes in an unsafe manner. Moving over 2 lanes to the right isn't unsafe.

It's his "you were all over the road" comment that makes me think he is lying. No way was I "all over the road".

[GMAN]

You may want to check to see if he had a camera in his cruiser. More cops have them these days. If so, it could either help you or hurt you. He also has another cop as a witness. If the other cop was in the car with him, then you have two officers of the court making the same statements. In court, the judge will usually take the word of an officer over the defendant. If both are present it will probably be a slam dunk for them. As stated earlier, you would probably do better by paying a lawyer to plead your case. They can often get away with much more than a defendant. Unsafe lane changes is a serious offense as is weaving. When you hold a CDL you need to rigorously fight any moving violation. It may cost more to hire a lawyer, but may be cheaper in the long run if you are convicted in court.

[rebajosh]

double post

[rebajosh]

Thanks for the replies. I found a violation like "FAILING TO OBEY TRAFFIC CONTROL DEVICES" on a NJ point website. I can try to get the prosecutor to give me that, with zero points attached. I'm getting lots of "don't knows" from attorneys I call and from clerks who answer the phone at the courthouse.

The attorneys tell me the violation may or may not be transferred over to my home state. That would be good, since it wouldn't go on my license then. But it "might" and "might not" be transferred. Meaning I have to wait and see if it appears on my MVR !!


The prosecutor may not allow me to plea bargain. May have to plead guilty or not guilty and get the judge's verdict. Even with a 2 pooint conviction, the 2 points and/or the conviction itself "may or may not" be transferred to my home state. Lots of vagueness.

This thing is really wearing me down. The hearing is next week.

Moral of the story : drive safe, don't get tickets.

Any other suggestions / ideas are welcome, of course.

Krell

My company is out of Jersey so I know a few drivers who have gotten tickets there. Jersey never notified thier home state so thier tickets never showed up on thier license. They were all speeding ticks though so I don't know if they treat weaving differantly or not.

I would not want to risk them not reporting it. I agree with all the others good advice. Do whatever you can to get it reduced to non-moving. You may get lucky and not have it reported to your state but are you a gambler :?: