TKS S1 E6: "A Killer on the Road".

[LadyAstrid]

I just went outside and prayed for all of these women, their families, friends, and loved ones. I never imagined, after tonight's episodes, that there were SO MANY! We should start a petition to the government that VICAP be MANDATORY and that anyone, anywhere, arrested should have to give a DNA sample (even familial DNA could bring closure to many of these unsolved cases) There is so much heartbreak out there.
I am so thankful this holiday season that my family/ friends are not looking back on my life through this horrific documentary! Please, every websluth out there, say a prayer for these victims and their families and pray for closure for their loved ones!

I did start one!

http://www.thepetitionsite.com/951/...g-mandatory-for-all-law-enforcement-agencies/

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[LadyAstrid]

Ac-Lucky...not sure if you saw this but Lady Astrid was right on it!!

Thank you

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[kat913]

I saw the goal was 1,000 but only 32 at moment....wish it could get more publicity!

 

[PositiveLight]

If a trucker must submit then all people should submit period to form a nationwide database.
I've was in the industry for over 20 years (I am female, spouse still a driver) that being said I feel no single occupation should be singled out.

Actually electronic logs and GPS tracking are NOT mandatory. There are lawyers for independent truckers who have been keeping the laws from being passed to make it mandatory. I for one am all for passing the laws to make them mandatory. I am retired now due to medical reasons, however my spouse is still a driver. My last few years of driving were in electronic logs, my spouse is on electronic logs, and both units are tracked. He also, out of his own pocket, purchased a dash cam a lot of things are caught on his cam.

----------------

My heart strings get torn each time I see people point fingers at truckers. I'm not oblivious to the fact there are serial killer truckers out there, but I do not feel there would be any more of them or any less in any other profession. The only difference is that being as mobile as they are they have more chances to remain anonymous for longer as there is a need for a system that actually works to connect law enforcement from all over so more patterns can be obvious.

From the episode...
Oklahoma City has long been a city that creeps me out. There are several very large truck stops there. At one time, I'm not sure if it still exists, one was on the same property of a hotel that has a bar. As a female I woukd never have gone in there to hang out, have a meal, drinks etc.

Some of the truck stops at the western part of town back up to empty lots that are very scary as well.

As a driver you heat different rumours and or tall tales. One such story I've heard from many fellow drivers is that a prostitute in OKC gave a driver a STD and he has sought vengeance since by killing protitutes from there. I have no idea where the story got started but I've heard it many times.

Another thing I want to point out. A lot of people talk about drug use in the trucking industry. It's not that common really. Companies are required to do "X" amount of random tests per quarter. The names are drawn from a pool of employees as well as its common for the trained representative of the company will be set up in the break room testing every driver who hits the yard. Random testing is a big deal as is annual testing to retain your job. Drug tests are also given when a driver goes in for their physical "health card" which is required to be valid and current, as well as it is to be taken to the DMV and it is scanned into the system which can be viewed by any law enforcement or DOT by swiping or scanning their CDL or by entering the licence number. By the way, the physical requirements have been updated in the past few years and the requirements now are more detailed than what a commercial pilot has to pass to retain their health card in order to work.



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I also have a family member that is a long haul trucker.
He's my granddaughter's papa.
Not all truckers are bad people. Many are quite helpful in fact. That's what makes it so bad when a percentage of them are doing horrid things. It looks bad on all of the innocent ones too.
Is it mandatory for private truckers to also get drug tests regularly? Who would test them?
The reason I ask is two fold. One reason is because of the case we are discussing but the second reason is my aunt and uncle were involved in a terrible accident that caused the loss of my uncle and my aunt took months to get even functional. They were at a redlight on a 5 lane highway, when a trucker who had ran three red lights hit them from behind and pinned them in between his truck and one crossing the road.
They find out pretty quickly that he was keeping 3 separate logs, had no insurance and he knew before impact that he was going to hit them because he jumped into the back of the cab and was uninjured. His steering wheel would have impaled him had he been still in his seat.
I've always wondered if he was on drugs to keep him awake that day.

 

[LadyAstrid]

I saw the goal was 1,000 but only 32 at moment....wish it could get more publicity!

I want to edit the goal to a much higher number once it gets close to reaching 1,000. I shared it on my fb and to close friends but it's not getting traction.

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[kat913]

Wonder if there was another way on WS for more to see and understand the importance?

 

[LadyAstrid]

Off topic, but have to tell you guys that the show has made me pull out all my old Bauhaus records. And that song no longer makes me think of Bowie.

I've been on a Bauhaus kick since the show started too lol

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[LadyAstrid]

Do you have sources for all of this? I am bothered by the Satanic Panic and how it spreads.

It's a dangerous way of thinking. Satanism isn't what most people think. I'm not advocating for them but there have been lots of people wrongly accused and imprisoned because of this way of thinking.

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[proctorelites]

Yeah keep in perspective that not all the sex workers are victims forced into this lifestyle. There is all kinds of help for them to do anything else. Some decide to take up this occupation for the fast money and know the dangers involved and accept that. Not saying they deserve to be murdered by any means.


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You're right, but I've never heard there being all kinds of help for them out there. Actually I've never heard of but 1 group and it's for emotional support. Or peer counciling. I wonder if it's readily available have they heard of something to help them. I asked a friend who worked and she said she never heard of anything like help for her kind.

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[caribou_birdie]

When I saw the red dots fill the map, I had chills. So sad that so many individuals were murdered and left on the roadside as garbage. No matter what path of life these women were in, they didn't deserve it.

Long haul trucking is the perfect cover for a SK.

 

[Barbie619]

I just went outside and prayed for all of these women, their families, friends, and loved ones. I never imagined, after tonight's episodes, that there were SO MANY! We should start a petition to the government that VICAP be MANDATORY and that anyone, anywhere, arrested should have to give a DNA sample (even familial DNA could bring closure to many of these unsolved cases) There is so much heartbreak out there.
I am so thankful this holiday season that my family/ friends are not looking back on my life through this horrific documentary! Please, every websluth out there, say a prayer for these victims and their families and pray for closure for their loved ones!

I tried going to sleep after the shows but my mind was spinning. I thought to myself that I could go to various police departments where I live and volunteer to enter the information myself. If the problem is due to lack of time and resources to do it, then volunteers could come in and get these departments caught up so our law enforcement nationwide can get accurate information on cases they are working on. I feel so helpless.....

 

[bluesneakers]

You're right, but I've never heard there being all kinds of help for them out there. Actually I've never heard of but 1 group and it's for emotional support. Or peer counciling. I wonder if it's readily available have they heard of something to help them. I asked a friend who worked and she said she never heard of anything like help for her kind.

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Very little help, if any. This is why they are the missing missing.

Vulnerable, overlooked, dismissed, forgotten.

 

[Barbie619]

Wow. I'm in a band that travels a few times a year and we frequently sleep in the van at rest and truck stops. Never thought anything about getting out of the van to smoke or wander around while my band mates slept. Not anymore.

I drive pretty frequently on the I70 from the East Coast to the Mid-West and I never feel safe stopping for any reason. My trip takes me approximately 15 hours, I bring my own snacks and only stop for gas and to use a restroom, in and out quickly. I don't linger at any place I stop at and I still don't feel completely safe. So many truckers on the road traveling the same route as me.

To prevent having to stop overnight or to rest for a extended period I usually leave my home between 3:00 - 4:00 am, fully gassed up and spend most of my traveling time in daylight. That's the only way I feel safest driving.......... But then I'm not on these roads prostituting myself at truck stops so my risk is lower of bumping into a serial killer.....

 

[Barbie619]

I would like to give some information to this investigation on these cases. I am an X pro X lot lizard X drug user and could help. I am from Cocoa Beach and Atlantic City and worked the truck stops in Texas and Oaklahoma 1985 thru 1988

So glad you are here and have lived to tell your story. I'm new here myself but I'd like to welcome you......:stay::wagon:

 

[honesty]

I also have a family member that is a long haul trucker.
He's my granddaughter's papa.
Not all truckers are bad people. Many are quite helpful in fact. That's what makes it so bad when a percentage of them are doing horrid things. It looks bad on all of the innocent ones too.
Is it mandatory for private truckers to also get drug tests regularly? Who would test them?
The reason I ask is two fold. One reason is because of the case we are discussing but the second reason is my aunt and uncle were involved in a terrible accident that caused the loss of my uncle and my aunt took months to get even functional. They were at a redlight on a 5 lane highway, when a trucker who had ran three red lights hit them from behind and pinned them in between his truck and one crossing the road.
They find out pretty quickly that he was keeping 3 separate logs, had no insurance and he knew before impact that he was going to hit them because he jumped into the back of the cab and was uninjured. His steering wheel would have impaled him had he been still in his seat.
I've always wondered if he was on drugs to keep him awake that day.

First of all I'm very sorry your family members were in such a terrible accident.
To answer your question about the drug testing for the involved trucker.

Because it (the accident) involved a commercial vehicle he automatically has to test. Hurt or not, he would be transported to the hospital where a DOT drug test would be performed.

As far as random drug testing and who performs that..
When we are setting up a DOT compliance company file part of the file is the drug testing section. For the small guys like it sounds like you are saying he is, and like the ones I work with, there are consortium programs.

A consortium is usually a local lab. (Think labcorp.) The small company signs a contract with the lab and handles all pre employment as well a random testing. Here is the loophole of this, say a guy has a one truck, one driver operation, this means he is responsive for his own testing. Try to follow me here, as this is a bit hard to explain. Every quarter the company is going to recieve a list, in the case of the solo driver he may or may not have to test in that quarter, in the event of a small fleet say of 10 or less drivers they recieve a list. This list is given at the start of the quarter and you have to send the drivers on the list to the lab by the end of the quarter. For the guy operating a one truck operation this means if he was pulled from the list then he actually has 90 days or so to go to the lab, plenty of time to clean himself up so he can pass. It's really not fair but they really do not have any other way to account for this at this time. Say I had 10 drivers, 25% of them will test within the quarter so roughly 2.5 names rounded up, 3 names per quarter. One of those names will not only give urine, he will also blow into a machine to test for alcohol. The total pool usually is around 100 to 150 drivers made up of tjese independent companies. Years ago I took a coarse where I was trained and certified to conduct reasonable suspicion testing. This is only required when you are running a fleet a small independent company of just 2 or 3 drivers does not have to have someone who is certified.
Back to the case of the accident your family members were involved in, the driver should be in jail! The situation you describe involves more than one felony charge for sure. Not only has he committed felonies, he's also put himself at risk for major financial responsibility. Since he had let his insurance lapse he is wide open to loosing everything for at long time to come. Insurance only protects a person if they have current coverage. Say had his insurance been covered, and he was a limited liability registered company he might have been afforded some coverage, however if 3 paper logs were found and he had no coverage, there is no telling what else he was hiding on the downlow, he can lose his freedom and when he gets out can lose much of his personal income for many years to come if a judgement is issued in a court of law.

I hope my explanation is not so jumbled it makes it hard to understand. I hope your family recovers from this accident and finds a sense of normalcy once again.

 

[Barbie619]

Personally I think the constitution over rides that idea. I do not think we can constitutionally single out certain segments of the population because of what might happen.

IMO at the very least a CORI background check should be required in all states. I am unsure of the status of that currently.


:cow:

I don't know what a CORI backround check is, but I know someone who was fresh out of prison :jail:after 30 years and he did some training to become a truck driver and got his certification and license. I believe in 2nd chances and he has never been convicted of killing anyone in spite of his violent crime. He was recently arrested for being in a known prostitution area, so I'm unsure of where he's at right now.

When I found that recent arrest I unfriended him on facebook. I'm normally not surrounded by ex-convicts but he was a childhood friend of mine so I stayed in touch once he was released from prison. How is society protected from these guys who are possibly on the road, traveling around the country in their trucks?

 

[Barbie619]

So let me interject a remedy here. I am all about my rights. Buy when I served in the army I had my finger prints taken before even going to boot camp.

Shouldn't a trucking job that travels all over the country require something on a national level ? If it's left to state by state it would be too hard to keep up with and fall through the cracks.

Aren't our major highways Federal or Government ? I am pretty sure if you kidnap someone and take them across state lines it becomes federal.

Just Saying

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Reclassifiying this particular job to a Federal Level is a thought because yes Interstate Highways do fall under State/Federal I believe.

 

[Barbie619]

Lmao...
We've been reading on driverless trucks. It's so Jetsons like! I personally can see many problems with driverless trucks. Hopefully it will not happen in my lifetime.

There are some pilot programs happening with them currently. I would have to do some digging but if I'm not mistaken walmart is running a pilot program on them. They are manned, meaning a driver is physically in the rig, but he more or less is manning a post much like a train operator does.

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I worked for UPS in the IT department and ALL of the trucks were hooked up with every single new technology. UPS came into the computer technology business with a huge bang. The trucks can tell how hard a driver pressed on the brakes (data at the time used for maintenance purposes only), it automatically timed how long a driver was out of the truck (again for timecard purposes).

The 18 wheeler trucks are used in a very interesting way too. One truck meets another truck, each with a load, switch drivers and on to the next destination, no long haul drivers so to speak. I wonder if this is a normal practice within the trucking industry or just a UPS thing using all the latest technology. Those trucks are loaded with data gathering information which is then uploaded to stations that is then used for multiple tasks, including package information, and the amount of soap that is used on each truck when washed each day.

 

[honesty]

I worked for UPS in the IT department and ALL of the trucks were hooked up with every single new technology. UPS came into the computer technology business with a huge bang. The trucks can tell how hard a driver pressed on the brakes (data at the time used for maintenance purposes only), it automatically timed how long a driver was out of the truck (again for timecard purposes).

The 18 wheeler trucks are used in a very interesting way too. One truck meets another truck, each with a load, switch drivers and on to the next destination, no long haul drivers so to speak. I wonder if this is a normal practice within the trucking industry or just a UPS thing using all the latest technology. Those trucks are loaded with data gathering information which is then uploaded to stations that is then used for multiple tasks, including package information, and the amount of soap that is used on each truck when washed each day.

Your larger companies all have these things. Some are monitored by qualcom others by peoplenet. Way different programs but pretty much the same output of information.

Trucker lingo for companies like UPS and FedEx who do the point to point job you describe where one truck meets another truck then goes back where is came from is referred to as freight haulers. For instance I have longtime friends who haul for fedex. They start in Memphis each day, travel I-40 going east and meet another team driven truck in eastern tennessee, swap trailers and go back to Memphis and do it all over again. Some of the freight hauling companies are now defunct but back in the day you had recognizable names such as old dominion and humping to please with the camel logo. UPS and FedEx are used mostly for very fast delivery which drives up delivery price. Naturally they get paid more for the expedited services.

Car parts are moved very much the same way utilizing a timed system and are under contract with companies such as ryder, Ryder is much more than rental moving trucks. They have many divisions including their own brokerage company.

The newer model rigs themselves are amazing. Just a example I'm pretty versed in currently is a volvo. (Other brands have this technology as well) My spouse has a 2016 model volvo, it has its own, from the factory built in computer system that when it finds a fault code, it's sends information back to Volvo and it diagnoses itself. This also sends an alert to the companies shop manager. It's very detailed. It can tell them most anything and if it's a programming issue the tech at volvo can send signal back to the truck and download a fix. It's truly amazing.

Then on top.of the truck itself the company has a computer installed tjat recognizes a trailer identification when it's hooked to the tractor. No need for the driver to call in or send s computer message stating they picked up trailer number xyz000.

Logging is done by the computer as well eliminating the need for paper logs and reduces errors. A driver is only allowed to driver 11 hours within a 14 hour period and must take a 30 minute break within the first 6 hours of driving. When it's coming time for the driver to take a break the computer will alert the driver he or she needs to be looking for a place to satisfy his or her 30 minute required break. When he or she starts the break he or she taps a macro button on screen to let the computer know he or she is following the rule. If the driver is nearing his or her 11 or 14 hours, a hour before the deadline, the computer alerts the driver so tjey know to be looking for a place to bed down for the night to complete their required 10 hours of combined off duty and sleep time period.

Now I am not sure how all companies with this technology operate but in the case of my spouse, he is given a report, I want to believe it is quarterly, and in that report it will tell him how many times he's had a hard breaking, if he's gone over speed (the truck is governed but weight pushes you downhill allowing you to speed) it tells if and how many times he's gone over his drive time. It is a big no-no to go over drove time but certain conditions allow it for a shirt period such as bad weather. Say it's snowing and your either stuck on the interstate at a standstill or moving 10mph, you cannot just shut down on the highway. You are allowed to go over you log time only long enough to get the tractor and trailer parked in a safe manner off the highway.

These computers are a excellent tool. Think black box... They can tell a lot about wjat has happened in the event of a crash. This has saved millions of dollars in insurance claims.

 

[Barbie619]

Your larger companies all have these things. Some are monitored by qualcom others by peoplenet. Way different programs but pretty much the same output of information.

Trucker lingo for companies like UPS and FedEx who do the point to point job you describe where one truck meets another truck then goes back where is came from is referred to as freight haulers. For instance I have longtime friends who haul for fedex. They start in Memphis each day, travel I-40 going east and meet another team driven truck in eastern tennessee, swap trailers and go back to Memphis and do it all over again. Some of the freight hauling companies are now defunct but back in the day you had recognizable names such as old dominion and humping to please with the camel logo. UPS and FedEx are used mostly for very fast delivery which drives up delivery price. Naturally they get paid more for the expedited services.

Car parts are moved very much the same way utilizing a timed system and are under contract with companies such as ryder, Ryder is much more than rental moving trucks. They have many divisions including their own brokerage company.

The newer model rigs themselves are amazing. Just a example I'm pretty versed in currently is a volvo. (Other brands have this technology as well) My spouse has a 2016 model volvo, it has its own, from the factory built in computer system that when it finds a fault code, it's sends information back to Volvo and it diagnoses itself. This also sends an alert to the companies shop manager. It's very detailed. It can tell them most anything and if it's a programming issue the tech at volvo can send signal back to the truck and download a fix. It's truly amazing.

Then on top.of the truck itself the company has a computer installed tjat recognizes a trailer identification when it's hooked to the tractor. No need for the driver to call in or send s computer message stating they picked up trailer number xyz000.

Logging is done by the computer as well eliminating the need for paper logs and reduces errors. A driver is only allowed to driver 11 hours within a 14 hour period and must take a 30 minute break within the first 6 hours of driving. When it's coming time for the driver to take a break the computer will alert the driver he or she needs to be looking for a place to satisfy his or her 30 minute required break. When he or she starts the break he or she taps a macro button on screen to let the computer know he or she is following the rule. If the driver is nearing his or her 11 or 14 hours, a hour before the deadline, the computer alerts the driver so tjey know to be looking for a place to bed down for the night to complete their required 10 hours of combined off duty and sleep time period.

Now I am not sure how all companies with this technology operate but in the case of my spouse, he is given a report, I want to believe it is quarterly, and in that report it will tell him how many times he's had a hard breaking, if he's gone over speed (the truck is governed but weight pushes you downhill allowing you to speed) it tells if and how many times he's gone over his drive time. It is a big no-no to go over drove time but certain conditions allow it for a shirt period such as bad weather. Say it's snowing and your either stuck on the interstate at a standstill or moving 10mph, you cannot just shut down on the highway. You are allowed to go over you log time only long enough to get the tractor and trailer parked in a safe manner off the highway.

These computers are a excellent tool. Think black box... They can tell a lot about wjat has happened in the event of a crash. This has saved millions of dollars in insurance claims.

This technology was becoming available way back in the 80's when I started working for UPS in the data center. It grew so fast that we could hardly keep up with it all but it was also a very exciting time for the company. Working in IT I was connected to HUBS worldwide, the Airline they developed and keeping all these operations up and running, so your packages were delievered on time. lol

Very intense work but was compensated very well for it. I was also the first woman hired in IT with my computer science degree, but that was way back in the 80's. It would definitely interest me if as you've said the technology is finally happening in the trucking industry, such as what's happening with the Volvo trucks your spouse is using.

It's certainly one way to by-pass constitutional rights many have stated here, as private trucking companies can require employee's to a certain point. UPS was cutting edge in tracking not just packages, but fuel, drivers time, mechanical systems. I KNOW the technology is available. It would be difficult for a UPS driver to become a SK on company time.

It seems pretty difficult to track long haul drivers who are out on the road, running state to state using little to no technology that's available. It's become harder to be a SK and to get away with it, but it's still happening and I wonder if it's just pure luck that they aren't caught in a timely fashion. LISK made a mistake calling one victim's sister, the AC4, well they were leading underworld lives and that SK knew about that area where the bodies were dumped. BUT it's the traveling SK working the roads of our country who are able to commit their crimes and keep moving further away from the bodies they leave behind, they are the most dangerous and scary, IMHO...