Truck Accidents: Fatigued Drivers, Walmart and Tracy Morgan

No one is immune from becoming involved in a car accident. If you drive on roadways, are a passenger in a vehicle, or walk on sidewalks you can be a victim of one. So, in the category of celebrities, they’re just like us, this time it is completely true—celebs get in car accidents just like we do. They range from minor accidents to major accidents involving catastrophic injury and even death. Celebrity legal news outlets, like PROOF with Jill Stanley often cover these accidents. One such tragic accident lead to serious injury for comedian, Tracy Morgan and very sadly, to the death of his friend and colleague, James McNair as well as serious injury to another comedian Ardie Fuqua Jr. and Morgan’s assistant, Jeffrey Millea.

In June 2014 Morgan and six others were in a limo bus on the New Jersey Turnpike when Kevin Roper, a WalMart tractor trailer driver plowed into the rear of Morgan’s limo bus sending it into other vehicles and then causing the limo bus to tip onto its’ side. Six vehicles were involved in the accident. Roper was charged with causing it and, after an investigation, the National Transportations Safety Board (NTSB) agreed. Reports showed that Roper had been awake for 28 hours and that had he slowed his vehicle to 45 mph, the posted limit, the accident might have been prevented. The NTSB also noted that Morgan and the other passengers were not wearing seat belts and had adjusted the vehicle’s headrests which contributed to the severity of their injuries.

Morgan sued Walmart for his injuries and the case settled for an undisclosed amount. If there is some good to come out of this tragedy it is that the dangers of driver fatigue and truck safety have been highlighted. So maybe Walmart will now think twice, or, even better perhaps they have instituted new procedure as to when they their drivers are assigned to drive on the nation’s roadways. Maybe now they do more to ensure that their drivers are alert and not fatigued before sending them out to the very same streets on which are children and loved ones travel.

It should be noted that in February 2016 Roper plead not guilty to criminal charges connected with this accident.