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Trucking

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ObsidianOne

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Dec 16, 2010
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I'm watching Doomsday Preppers (I know, we've probably had a million threads on stuff about this show) and it has an over the road truck driver that has a few firearms that he keeps with him, and I once had the opportunity to have a career in that field, but decided against it for many reasons, the limitations of carrying firearms being one of them.
How can one drive around without adjusting to each state's requirements (i.e. California) and carry firearms in a big rig?
Is there some kind of 'peaceful passing' they get when doing so or would it just be completely illegal?
 
As a former driver I can tell you that it's not a great idea but it is possible. The majority of states do not have any real restrictions in regards to people carrying firearms in and out of their state. However there are a few places, such as New York or D.C., that simply will not allow you to bring in an "unregistered" firearm unless you're just passing through with it unloaded and locked in the trunk (or in the case of a rig in the sidebox). The problem is, what if you have to stop and conduct business in one of these areas? Federal law doesn't protect you if you're not actually just "passing through," and certain places, like anti-gun Chicago, are major hubs for the trucking industry. When I was over the road I was in Chicago a lot, sometimes several times a week.

On top of that most trucking companies have rules against guns being in their trucks.

If the gentleman you saw owned his own rig and/or had enough control of his routes to determine where he would or would not be traveling then it's entirely possible that he was staying 100% legal. But in my experience for the average driver it wouldn't be possible to keep a gun in the truck and always be 100% legal with it.
 
Not to mention almost every delivery point I go to is a no gun zone. Some posted at the gate, some not until you get inside. There have been times I sure wished I had more than my good looks to get me out of trouble, but the fact that I have an adult black lab with me keeps some of the critters away.
 
I do believe he owned his own rig. I also think that he doesn't own a home. His rig is his home. So if it's his home would he be allowed to have firearms? Just a thought.
 
So if it's his home would he be allowed to have firearms?
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No. His rig is legally registered as a Commercial Motor Vehicle. It's not a home.

His rig is his home.
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Again no. Legally his CDL has to be tied to a fixed address somewhere. So even if he never goes there he has a "home" somewhere. So no way he could really claim the rig was his home.

Cops don't even need PC to stop us.
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Basically true. They just call it a DOT inspection and they don't need any other reason to stop a truck.
 
Rob G said:
No. His rig is legally registered as a Commercial Motor Vehicle. It's not a home.

Again no. Legally his CDL has to be tied to a fixed address somewhere. So even if he never goes there he has a "home" somewhere. So no way he could really claim the rig was his home.
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Actually, during the times the rig is parked and the driver is occupying the sleeper, it is considered his home for the purposes of firearms possession. Just like a rented hotel room is. During the times the truck is in movement, it is considered a vehicle, for the purposes of firearms possession.
 
Is this the guy who wanted to camo' his truck, so he covered 1/2 of the cab in $1500 worth of netting, leaving the rest of the blue truck sticking out? And his guns were hi-points I think?
 
Actually, during the times the rig is parked and the driver is occupying the sleeper, it is considered his home for the purposes of firearms possession.
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How do you figure that?:confused:
 
Thanks for the info guys, sounds like it was just as expected.

And Ratdrall, he spent $400-$500 on the netting to cover the cab, they estimated $1500+ to cover the whole truck :p

I don't believe he had Hipoints, that was another prepper, if I'm not mistaken.
 
I have no problem with the hi point. The 9mm carbine is a blast to shoot! I have talked to very few people who have had a chance to try one out complain about anything other than mag capacity.
 
If you drive as a company driver you can not have, a gun. Not even a knife over a few inches. Not even a baseball bat. If it is your own truck you probably could but would present difficulties if you drive cross country. I drove for a year and a half just bc I always wanted to as a kid. I quit my job to and went back after I had enough of the experience. I was partners with my dad in a business so I was able to do so easily. Anyway, in that year and a half I drove through every state except South Dakota. So, it would take a bit of reading to understand the laws in that many states
 
fallout mike said:
If you drive as a company driver you can not have, a gun. Not even a knife over a few inches. Not even a baseball bat.
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And exactly how do you know the company policies of every company out there? :scrutiny:
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by fallout mike
If you drive as a company driver you can not have, a gun. Not even a knife over a few inches. Not even a baseball bat.
Click to expand...

And exactly how do you know the company policies of every company out there?
Click to expand...

I have to agree with NavyLCDR on this one. Although most of the big name trucking companies out there have a policy against guns, large knives, and baseball bats, not all of them do. Not to mention that enforcement isn't always what it seems. One of my former employers was one of the largest trucking companies in the U.S. and I know for a fact that quite a few drivers carried firearms. One even used his while in the truck itself and kept his job afterward. Nothing was said about the fact that he was armed.

I distinctly remember a conversation I had with a dispatcher/account manager one time about that. His exact words were: "Technically it's against company policy but we don't ask questions. I'm sure some of the drivers carry."

If I had to guess I'd say it's a question of liability. If a driver does something stupid with a weapon the company can always say that it's against their policy and wash their hands of the matter. If the shoot is good though, well they can just warn him not to do it again right? ;)
 
Actually, most of that is DOT regulations. Also, trucking companies are very concerned with liability and insurance regs. Its crazy all the advertisements by lawyers soliciting cases by way of billboards and tv, radio, etc by starting with "have you been in an accident with a 18 wheeler"?
 
State laws would only become a problem if the trucker were to enter a state with laws that conflicted with the items he had in possession.

I know of a driver who works full time for a trucking company. He drives back and forth from a brewery to a warehouse less than 5 miles away. Back and forth, all day every day. He never leaves the town and he never visits a port of entry.
 
Navy, you are right. I just looked it up. I swear though, that's what the trucking company told us. It was against company policy and they said against DOT regs. They must have been trying to scare us.
 
I swear though, that's what the trucking company told us. It was against company policy and they said against DOT regs. They must have been trying to scare us.
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Most trucking companies will say that if you ask them. It's a pretty standard line in the industry. I was never sure if they really believed that or not.
 
fallout mike said:
Navy, you are right. I just looked it up. I swear though, that's what the trucking company told us. It was against company policy and they said against DOT regs. They must have been trying to scare us.
Click to expand...

Amazing, isn't it?!? :D

Thanks for coming back and confirming, many folks are just way too defensive and either won't research it or won't come back and disclose what they found.
 
NavyLCDR...Could you clarify this...
Actually, during the times the rig is parked and the driver is occupying the sleeper, it is considered his home for the purposes of firearms possession. Just like a rented hotel room is. During the times the truck is in movement, it is considered a vehicle, for the purposes of firearms possession.
Click to expand...

Try as I might, I couldn't find anything supporting this.

It's not true here in AK, and from what I could tell, it's unsupported anywhere.:confused:
 
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