I still think he should have gone straight to a hospital and had a blood alcohol level done. There is no reason for drinking and driving, but what you do on your off duty time is your own business, as long as your not under the influence while driving! It was definitely a mistake to have a beer after they had suspected him of drinking though!
One of you cut and pasters go and find the rule in the regs about how long before you come on duty can you consume alcohol.
I believe if he had had his 10 hrs off the blood alcohol level would have reflected this, and he would have had a leg to stand on. To the rest of the readers, we don’t really know what the facts really are; so don’t be so quick to point your fingers. I myself like to have a drink every now and then. If I am on the road, I will generally get a hotel room before I drink. Sometimes I will sleep in the truck with the keys locked in my briefcase, what ever the case is, you have the right to let off steam on your off duty time, but to say a driver can no longer partake in libations because he now has a CDL is just wrong!!
Remember the key words here “ you should not be under the influence of alcohol or ANY kind of narcotics while driving ANY kind of motor vehicle ”!!!!!!!!!!

 

SSoutlaw;

On this one, I have to repecfully disagree with you. Of course, with you, I certainly DO NOT want to be disageeable!!

The problem that I have with what you are saying, as far as reserving judgement, is this;

First of all, as a shipper, a driver is part of a solution to satisfying a client. (the receiver). As a shipper, I already have capitol tied up, sitting on my dock, costing me money as it sits there. I have a client in need of my product, and in most cases, I don't get paid untill the client receives the shipmemt.

So, it is not in my best interest to look for trouble; at the same time, if I suspect a driver of having alcohol in his system, say nothing, and let him drive off with the payload, I am placing my company in danger's way. I he DOES have alcohol in his system, and if he does get into a wreck, my company can now be sued, as well as the trucking company.

I've spent many years in manufacturing, and trust me, I do know what I'm talking about!!

The other problem here, and the most telling problem here, is that the driver in question chose to deal with his frustrations by doing what??? He skipped over to the tavern, climbed up on a bar stool, and into a bottle. Now, that right there tells you something is TERRIBLY wrong with this dude!!

Peace, and Happy Easter!!
Useless

 

§382.207 Pre-duty use.

No driver shall perform safety-sensitive functions within four hours after using alcohol. No employer having actual knowledge that a driver has used alcohol within four hours shall permit a driver to perform or continue to perform safety-sensitive functions.

 

Thank you for the happy Easter, and right back at YOU.
I don’t have any problems with you Useless, you know that, I like what you bring to this forum!
Like I said in my post, going to get that beer with the problems he had with his company, and shipper was wrong! I myself wouldn’t have done this. Maybe he has some problems, I don’t know, but reading here on this forum for a while I know this, to make a better observation we need to know the whole story, and we rarely get this here…lol Therefore I can not judge his motives for what he does till I hear his side. Well be good, I have a lunch date with the most gorgeous woman, Ya I will have a drink, what the heck 50 yrs old, and its my turn…lol Have a great day….

 

I knew it was 4 hrs, just wanted someone else to bring it up....lol
Takes the weight off of me...lol

 

I'm confused by this story. Why didn't the sheriff perform a breath alcohol content test? A BAC. He had probable cause. This story doesn't add up in that regard.

While Swift receives almost exclusively negative reports, this is one instance where they did the right thing.

BTW, after re-reading the OP's first post I believe that she wasn't present with him during this incident. I would be real hesitant to believe his version of the story verbatim. :shock:

 

Moderator.... You're right. I wasn't with him when it happened and I don't know how much time had lapsed between his drinking Sunday night and his arriving at the shipper, or if he was intoxicated while driving. Tim had been so adament on following the rules... he's so maticulous on everything he does.... he surely scrooed the pooch on this one. I've never seen him so happy as he was while driving a truck. It has been a livelong dream for him, and when he found out it was for me, we took God's signs and followed them - everything, until he messed up, had been pointing in the direction for us to drive a truck.

Yes, to those of you who call him a LOSER, he is by far a loser in that department this week. I'll be the first to admit that, and so will he. We've split up over it and I can't even seem to get out of bed out of shame and depression, except to get onto this site. But, in his defense, he isn't a loser in life. As a Firefighter/EMT for the past ten years, and a Hazmat Tech for the last year, he has risked his own life to save more lives and people's property than so many can ever say they'd even get close to. This is what he chose, I know, but he did it just the same. While no longer working in this field and waiting to start his CDL class, his neighbor's house caught on fire one night. He didn't think twice to get dressed with no shirt, jump the fence and pull the passed out neighber from the burning living room prior to the fire department arriving. When the fire department arrived, he didn't stick around to collect a Kudo or a write-up in the paper. Loser? No. Stupid. Yes.

I'm not a religious person, but have turned enough to God lately to see that He does give signs, and He has. I awoke this Easter morning with the first thought that maybe this was a sign... too. I have to think of it that way. It'll keep me from going over the edge from losing yet another dream, and give me the strength to keep going after what I know is meant to be. I owned a flooring store for several years and just lost it a few years ago. It seems the more you lose, the stronger you become. I'm not a stupid woman. You have all given such good advice, but please think about your own mistakes in life. I'm not saying this to justify, by no means. But neither he nor I are losers... we have made some bad decisions, and are willing to pay for them.

Tim shouldn't get out onto the road if he can't get this taken care of and realize that drinking, anywhere, and getting out into public is a no win situation for everybody involved. But, he has a big heart.... and now, a big problem.

Useless.... I appreciate your comments more than I can express. And, counseling for both of us is definitely in order.

I'm in the process of checking on a few more schools, and possibly financing from other trucking companies to attend the local CC's driving school. There is not a whole lot available in this area, it seems. I'll keep posting.

I came to this site for advice, and got it. Not to condone Tim getting back onto the road. At best, it makes for a good topic, and hopefully a learning post.

Take care all... enjoy your families this Easter day...

 

GypsySoul,

As I was reading the replies, and particularly Scoe's reply, another thought occurred to me, and I hope that you will take it to heart.

From what I've heard, you can save a ton of money on your car insurance by switching to GEICO!! It so easy, a CAVEMAN could do ot!!

Happy Easter, and God Bless,
Useless

 

Scoe... I can't help but comment on your avatar or image. I am a huge fan of those cavemen and pulling up your post made me smile for the first time this week!