Truck Driver Takes Plea Deal, Avoids Prison and Finally Ends Publicized Saga
by Jana Ritter - Published: 12/02/2016Well, it looks like the near three-year saga of the high profile crash involving actor Tracy Morgan is finally coming to an end. This week the Wal-Mart truck driver who slammed into the back of a van carrying Morgan and several passengers and killing one of them, has entered a guilty plea to avoid serious jail time.
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Kevin Roper is the 37-year-old former truck driver from Jonesboro, Georgia, who was making a delivery job in New Jersey that fateful night in June of 2014. According to the investigation report, Roper had been driving through a construction zone on the New Jersey turnpike and had failed to slow down despite posted warning signs alerting drivers of the construction work in progress. It was found that Roper’s truck was going 65 mph in a 45 mph zone until about 200 feet before hitting the passenger van. The National Transportation Safety Board also concluded that Roper hadn’t slept in the 28 hours before the crash, but his attorney has always disputed that claim. The board also faulted the passengers in the limo van for not wearing seat belts and for adjusting headrests, which contributed to the severity of their injuries when the limo was struck from behind.
Morgan and a group of friends were returning from his show in Delaware in the early morning hours. Comedian James McNair died upon impact and Morgan and three other passengers were severely injured in the crash. Morgan, known for his past roles on “30 Rock” and “Saturday Night Live” took a career hiatus to recover from the head injuries, broken leg and broken ribs he sustained in the crash. While Morgan and McNair’s children finally settled their civil suits with hefty payouts from Wal-Mart, Roper has been facing serious criminal charges in what his lawyer called a "media circus" and "witch hunt."
Roper had been charged with vehicular manslaughter and four counts of aggravated manslaughter, which could of sent him to prison for up to 30-years upon conviction. Originally he had pleaded not guilty and then decided to accept a plea deal that would allow him to avoid prison and also avoid a criminal record for performing community service and satisfying other conditions over the next three years. The deal is part of a non-prosecution diversion program acknowledging Roper as a first time offender and was approved by Middlesex County Superior Court Judge Michael Toto. Agreeing to the terms of the deal, Roper appeared in court Tuesday and acknowledged that he is responsible for a criminal act, and pleaded guilty to the charges.
“He is grateful for the opportunity to accept responsibility and move forward in doing what is required to obtain a dismissal of the charges pending against him,” said Roper’s attorney David Glassman
Walmart drivers are not good drivers my cousin was killed in a head on by a walmart truck few years ago damm driver was probably texting or fell asleep I hate passing a walmart truck
Very sorry to hear that David Turner : (
What happened to the one that killed 5 nurse students over in ga
He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 5 years. https://www.truckdrivingjobs.com/news/717/truck-driver-pleads-guilty-for-crash-that-killed-nursing-students.html
He wasn't a Walmart truck. Can't remember the company, red trucks outta MS tho.....
David Becker was Total Transportation of Ms.
wonder how many people commenting worked a 80 hour 5 day week then took off to go somewhere for the weekend and drove 6 to 12 hours to get there....hmmm
Great point!
Patrick J Bogard ... I have been saying this for years....the real problem nowadays is smart phones....the HOS rules are total BS.... a driver needs to be able to shutdown when he is tired....and not be penalized ...its hasnt been about safety for a while now its all about revenue.... we need a common sense approach to the trucking industry not lobbist from all these dumass doogooder groups....i have been around the indusrtry all my life and one thing i have seen that has been consistenet is none of these people making laws have any clue what the are doing....except screwing things up
I agree 100%! The trucking companies, shippers, and receivers will never be on the same page. Therefore the drivers bear the brunt of it.
I agree. The hos needs to change back to the old split sleepers. Drivers get the rest when they need it not when a box tells them to.
I agree also.....I tell new drivers all the time that ultimately THEY are the "captain of the ship" and if they hurt someone and they're dirty the trucking company ANY OF THEM are gonna throw their hands up and say "he's a pro, he knew better". Dispatchers and fleet managers don't care cause it's YOU that's gonna fry.....they just want their freight moved
Angel Alexander you hit the nail on the head. Very true.
Angel Alexander piss poor time management caused this not the HOS
This is not an HOS issue, not an elog issue and not even a trucking issue. He drove his car from Georgia to Delaware, 28 hrs with no rest. He was, by law, 100% legal to drive his semi. He made bad choices, irresponsible and a fatally bad decision. Paper logs, elogs or no logs at all could've helped him. Surprisingly, he didn't kill anyone between Georgia to Delaware.
Anthony Peetz he apparently lied to Walmart because your not supposed to live more than 200 miles away from DC
And Walmart trucks have all the "safety" gear (speed limiters, collision mitigating radar, elogs....etc) and still have a highly publicized accident. He was within his HOS so how does any of this technology make safer drivers?! Simple answer... it doesn't, only training can make a driver safe. We need much better driver training, that's the only thing that will make the roads safer for all of us.
They limit how fast trucks can go but car drivers only see us (truckers) as an obstical and try to go as fast as they can around us or they go slow until we want to pass then they speed up.. So times it's not always us. We need to start using dash cams to post some of the stupid maneuvers these car drivers are doing so everyone can see it and maybe before you can get a drivers license you have to have training on being on the road with trucks.. I hate going pass an accident were trucks are involved because the first thing they do is blame the trucker.. And how many times have you seen a car that's falling apart and still legal to be on the road but let us have low air pressure in our tires and we get fines or shut down til it's corrected..
But no wake up call
All the training in the world won't make a difference if it's not utilized. It's up to the driver to do the right thing. I've been out here for 20 year's and I don't always do thing's the legal way but I also know my limits.
Michelle Logsdon I agree with you there. My wife drives for prime and she hauls Walmart loads out of maine. And see how cars are. They need to do something about people retaking the road test for people that don't have a CDL.
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As a truck driver for 18 years, I've done both the elogs and now I am back to paper logs. I don't like the elogs, never did. They might be great for new drivers until they get used to driving, but, I like when I'm tired, I can pull over. With elogs, I was always racing that 14 hour rule. I would drive faster, to make where I need to be. The elogs make nothing safer...
Exactly!
Elogs wears you out in a long run especially if you are driving a slow governed truck.
If you do more research. He tried to get on with Walmart near his home but they wasn't hiring so they told him could get on in another state until he could transfer. He was commuting back and forth in his personal vehicle. Walmart drivers average about 80 grand a year.
All that equipment does not work if you do not have common sense
only $80? lol
That's damn good for a company driver..plus throw in great benefits... That's nothing to scoff at..
Depending upon the state, California Wal-Mart drivers average $100k, as stated by Wal-Mart in the recent Cali lawsuit.
How about he's totally guilty period!!! He was speeding in s construction zone. I know all you super truckers think the laws don't apply to you. But guess what.....they do. E logs paper logs have nothing to do with this drivers decision to speed. No matter what time of day it is. The speed limit is not a multiple choice just because there isn't any workers. Be real. It is what it is...
Walmart, JB hunt, Swift, Snider, Western and NFI are the worst companies to be driving poor maintenance vehicle even on brand new units they always cheats on pay checks
Since I work for walmart I know that you have no clue what you are talking about. Just spreading more lies and BS.
And spelled Schneider wrong so obviously never work there either. just another idiot talking out of his ass.
Walmart drivers are paid very well, run top tier maintained equipment and DO not push drivers. I was leased to a DC out of Marcy N.Y. in the early 2000s, treated us guys excellent. Quit your bullshit lied.
The lack of common sense is the cause of this accident. You see this lack of common sense every day on the road with truck drivers that tailgate and excessive speed.
Sure let blame the truck driver it was the cars fault to them nt whereing seatbelts to me the damm d.o.t has nothing else better to do then fuck us over
Funny how limo driver didn't get looked into as well.
He didn't work for Wal-Mart
No matter who, what, when,or where. Someone will not be happy. All in all he is just a human. No matter how hard you try. Something will happen to you. Its not will. But when. People who are not satisfied with the out come. Will only try to make him out bad. Unless you have ever driven on. You don't know what its like. You hate Walmart truck drivers. Stop shopping there. You Hate truck drivers. Stop buying things. And we won't be out there. Before you talk bad. Look at what you have and who brought it to the store near you. Not one driver is out there to hurt anyone. But some of you don't make it easy for us. And we are left to deal with what you leave behind.
Do people who drive cars really know what goes on with truck drivers? No they don't have any idea.. how when you go to a shipper or receiver and you have to stand on the dock while your trailer is getting loaded or unloaded so therefore you can't even rest while you're supposed to be even though you've been there for 6 to 8 hours and then they expect you to drive 11 hours to get to your next destination on time. And when you stop because your tired your company wondering why you are gonna be late and want to dock your pay or fire you. You people have no idea what it takes to be a truck driver and until you do I think you should close your mouth and stop judging us
Amen!
He was a total dumb ass , I forget but he commuted like 12 hrs to the truck wtf
Yep and when you were younger, I bet you never did something that should have been called a dumb ass for either?
Ok so you think he did the right thing , your as stupid as he is,lol
Did I say I thought what he did was right, no I did not. I just love it when someone makes an ass-u-me! But really the only dumb thing he did was have a crash, and being in a commercial truck when it happened. If he had done the same thing in the same size truck but not commercial, the world would never had known, now would they? You do know the difference between commercial and none-commercial truck and trailer combinations, don't you?
300 hrs of community service is ridiculous he killed somebody cause he was stupid at minimum should have live in jail at hard labor
What no black lives matter protest? no feelings hurt?
This was way before the dumb BLM protesters
Both of you are fucking idiots, assholes!!
Poor thin skinned un employed Austin sorry I hurt you thin skin there
Bull shit he should be bunkin with bubba
He didn't break one, not one single commercial vehicle law. Why does he need prison? He fell asleep, as many people do behind the wheel of any vehicle. He was irresponsible and careless, he drove from Georgia to Delaware non stop in his personal car. He had taken his required 34 hr rest at home. He did nothing criminal, stupid..yes, criminal..no.
Anthony Peetz he was speeding 65 in a 45 mph construction zone. That is breaking the law.
Anthony Peetz he turned a civil ticket for failure to comply with HOS into a criminal case because he failed to manage his time correctly like a professional. Maybe in your supertrucker mind it's ok but had he followed the law then a man wouldn't have died.
The law is clear in FMCSA section 395 that you mush have at least 8 hours continuous hours in the sleeper and 2 hours with off duty or in the sleeper before driving a Comercial Motor Vechicle. So my question to you is this. Did he comply with the laws in place? What would have been the likely result had he complied with the law?
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