The Nation

So how was your weekend? It was probably better than the one employees of Falcon Transport just had, as the people who work for the flatbed truckload carrier were informed without prior warning that the company was shutting down immediately. Falcon’s nearly 600 employees received email and text messages at around 8 p.m. Eastern Time Saturday from Falcon Transport’s Director of Operations Jayson Calhoun stating: “We regret to inform you that Falcon Transport is not able to continue operations and will be shutting down effective today. Please stop any work you are doing for the company effective immediately. You are not expected to return to work. Please be on the lookout for further information we will be sending regarding this situation.” According to multiple reports, many employees commented on social media that they did not receive their pay Friday, and that it had been explained that there had been a technical issue that would soon be fixed. Some drivers said their fuel cards had been deactivated after the message went out, and there were reports of drivers being stranded around the country, along with offers on social media to help get them home. Other now-former employees warned that the company’s DOT number was no longer valid, so it was illegal for Falcon’s trucks to be out on the road. Drivers were said to have taken the message at its word and stopped working as soon as they could, leaving their trucks or trailers at the first place they could and going home. It was in inglorious end for a company that had been in existence for more than a century. According to the company website, which was still up and running Monday, including a scrolling banner calling for new drivers, Falcon was “founded in 1903 with a single horse and wagon.” Falcon was family-owned and operated until it was purchased by the private equity firm CounterPoint Capital Partners, based out of Los Angeles, in 2017. Much of the immediate speculation for the cause of the company’s demise was that it could have had something to do with the closing of General Motors’ Lordstown Assembly plant in March. A great deal of Falcon’s business had been with the automotive industry. The Lordstown Assembly plant had been a major client and employees speculated that the company was unable to find enough loads to replace the lost revenue.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California’s governor wants to know why gas prices are higher than in the rest of the country, blaming potential “inappropriate industry practices” rather than the state’s higher taxes and tougher environmental regulations. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom asked the California Energy Commission for an analysis of the state’s gas prices by May 15. California drivers were paying an average of $4.03 per gallon Tuesday, or $1.18 more than the national average, according to AAA. The same differential can be seen with diesel prices. On Monday, the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s weekly roundup of fuel prices showed the price of diesel in California to be about 86 cents more expensive than the national average. Higher taxes, along with a combination of tougher gas standards and environmental regulations, normally account for about 70 cents of that difference, said Gordon Schremp, a senior fuels specialist with the California Energy Commission. But the rest is a mystery. In 2017, the state’s Petroleum Market Advisory Committee found that California has had “a continuous and significant unexplained differential compared to the rest of the country” since February 2015. That difference has cost Californians more than $17 billion, said Severin Borenstein, faculty director at the Energy Institute at the University of California, Berkeley’s business school. In a letter to energy commission chairman David Hochschild, Newsom defended the state’s environmental standards, accusing critics of using the high prices to “undermine our clean air and safety standards.” “Independent analysis suggests that an unaccounted-for price differential exists in California’s gas prices and that this price differential may stem in part from inappropriate industry practices,” Newsom wrote. The commission agreed to do the price analysis but declined further comment. Western States Petroleum Association President Catherine Reheis-Boyd noted that California’s gas prices have been scrutinized in dozens of government inquiries, “all of which concluded the dynamics of supply and demand are responsible for movements in the price of gasoline and diesel fuel.” Spiking gas prices have caused headaches for California policymakers since the Legislature approved a 12-cent gas tax increase in 2016. Last year, voters recalled a Democratic state senator who voted for the increase and replaced him with a Republican. But a statewide ballot initiative to repeal the higher tax failed with more than 56 percent of the vote. As gas and diesel prices kept climbing, 19 state lawmakers in January asked Attorney General Xavier Becerra to investigate the “unexplained surcharge.” “This mystery surcharge happens between the refinery and retail purchase by the consumer,” Democratic Assemblyman Marc Levine said. “This is a punitive, abusive practice that Californians are paying.” But it’s unclear if Becerra’s office took any action. Representatives from his office on Tuesday would not confirm or deny an investigation.

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — An Indianapolis-based trucking company has agreed to pay $42.2 million in restitution to settle securities fraud charges stemming from falsely reporting inflated profits and assets to investors. The Department of Justice and Celadon Group Inc. announced the settlement Thursday for “filing materially false and misleading statements to investors and falsifying books, records and accounts.” Celadon entered into a deferred prosecution agreement in connection with a criminal information filed in the Southern District of Indiana charging the company with securities fraud. Under the agreement, Celadon will pay the restitution to shareholders over the next five years in return for having the charge dismissed. Prosecutors said Quality Companies LLC, a subsidiary of Celadon that leased tractors and trailers to owner-operator truckers, saw its inventory grow rapidly from approximately 750 tractors and trucks in 2013 to more than 11,000 in 2016. However, Quality began struggling financially in 2016 due in part to a slowdown in the trucking market and it had a significant number of a truck models with mechanical issues, which many drivers did not want to lease. By 2016, many of Quality’s trucks were idle, unleased and overvalued on its books by tens of millions of dollars, prosecutors said. Instead of properly reporting Quality’s financial difficulties to investors, members of Celadon’s and Quality’s senior management team at the time participated in a scheme that resulted in Celadon falsely reporting inflated profits and inflated assets to investors, prosecutors said. Between June and October 2016, Quality made a series of trades to dispose of its aging and unused trucks using invoices purposely inflated well above market value, hiding millions of dollars of losses from investors. “Celadon executives misled the investing public for a simple reason: profit,” Assistant U.S. Attorney General Brian Benczkowski said in a statement. The company said it also reached a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission over civil accounting fraud in which it agreed to give up $7.5 million that’s part of the restitution amount. Celadon issued a statement saying the fraud occurred prior to the hiring of the company’s current chief executive officer, chief financial officer, and chief accounting officer. “The settlements with DOJ and SEC mark an important milestone,” current Celadon CEO Paul Svindland said. “We have now settled the governmental investigations and other legal proceedings related to the events that arose under prior management.” The Justice Department also said Quality’s former president, Danny Williams, reached a plea agreement after being charged with conspiracy to commit securities fraud, making false statements to a public company’s accountants, and falsifying books, records and accounts of a public company. The agreement does not stipulate a sentence.

STEELE, N.D. — TravelCenters of America (TravelCenters), a nationwide operator of the TA, Petro Stopping Centers and TA Express travel center networks, said the newly rebranded Steele, N.D., Coffee Cup Fuel Stop as a TA Express has officially opened. It is the first franchise to rebrand and open as a TA Express. The new TA Express is located at Interstate 94/ North Dakota Highway 3, Exit 200 in North Dakota. This is the first of four Coffee Cup Fuel Stops rebranding as TA Express, thus joining TA’s total nationwide network of 258 travel centers. The remaining Coffee Cup Fuel Stops that will be converting to TA Express are in South Dakota in the cities of Vermillion, Summit and Hot Springs. The operator, Heinz, Inc., also plans to build two new TA Express travel centers in Rapid City and Sioux Falls, South Dakota. “Today is a great day, as we welcome the Coffee Cup team to the TravelCenters of America family,” said Barry Richards, president and COO of TravelCenters. “The team has been working hard since the agreement was signed to get the site systems and branding changed over to TA Express. This new facility provides professional drivers all the benefits one would expect at any TA nationwide.” Amenities at the location include: Shell-branded gasoline with 16 fueling positions 7 diesel fueling lanes 75 truck parking and 50 auto parking spaces Caribou Coffee, Pizza Hut Express and Subway quick-service restaurants Laundry room 3 driver showers An outdoor picnic area, children’s playground and pet area Plans for improvements and amenities to be added to the Steele location include the addition of a Cinnabon, five additional driver showers and a three-bay TA Truck Service repair facility. Professional drivers will also be able to earn and redeem UltraONE loyalty program points at all of the rebranded locations.

PHOENIX  — Arizona ended a decade of resistance to restrictions on using a cellphone while driving when Gov. Doug Ducey signed a law Monday outlawing holding a phone behind the wheel. It is now the 48th state to ban texting and the 18th to ban hand-held phone use while driving, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Bills to restrict phone use while driving have been introduced for years but haven’t advanced amid concerns by Republican lawmakers about creating a “nanny state” that overregulates behavior. The death of a police officer hit by a distracted driver last winter, heartbreaking stories from others who lost loved ones in car crashes linked to cellphone use, and a wave of restrictions enacted by local governments across the state convinced lawmakers the time was ripe for change. “Let’s send a message that that text message can wait. It’s not worth your life,” the Republican governor said before signing the bill. Ducey said momentum changed thanks in large part to the advocacy of Toni Townsend, whose son, Salt River tribal police officer Clayton Townsend, was killed in January while he was standing next to a vehicle he’d stopped on a Scottsdale freeway. Authorities said the driver who hit him was texting his wife. “I think everyone just saw this as such an avoidable death,” Ducey said. “And when someone comes down and speaks with the power and passion of a mom on behalf of a fallen son, how could they not deliver it to the governor’s desk?” Ducey signed the bill surrounded by Townsend’s relatives and others who lost a relative to distracted driving. Officers can issue warnings immediately and can write tickets starting in 2021, though the more than two dozen cities, towns and counties with their own restrictions on phone use can continue to enforce their laws in the meantime. Lawmakers hope the delay will give people time to learn about the new law before they’re subjected to fines ranging from $75 to $250. “There is a law that’s been signed into effect, but we need to change our behaviors today,” Toni Townsend said. “We don’t have to wait for the law. A lot of lives can be saved. We’re educating starting today.” Ducey declined to say whether he’ll sign a second bill approved last week that strengthens Arizona’s existing distracted driving law, allowing officers to make a stop for any action unrelated to driving that creates an immediate hazard. It was proposed as an alternative to restricting cellphone use that wouldn’t specifically target a driver’s behavior, which some Republicans found more palatable. The Arizona law leaves Montana and Missouri as the only states that do not ban texting for anyone driving, though Missouri does for drivers 21 and younger.

FORT LEE, N.J. — New York’s plan to charge a fee for motorists entering its congested midtown area won’t go into effect for another two years but is already renewing time-honored animosities between the state and its neighbor to the west. Standing on a bridge overlooking the heavily traveled George Washington Bridge that connects the two states, two New Jersey congressmen on Wednesday variously called the plan “poorly conceived,” ”a raw deal” and “a two-by-four to our head.” New York would become the first American city to use so-called congestion pricing to decrease vehicle traffic and fund mass transit improvements, following in the footsteps of London, Singapore and Stockholm. Those cities experienced an initial reduction in traffic and gained a steady revenue stream for public transit. New York will use the revenue, estimated at up to $1 billion annually, to refurbish its aging and chronically underfunded subway system. The state legislature passed the fee plan this month, but details are far from being finalized. In response, Democrats Josh Gottheimer and Bill Pascrell on Wednesday outlined legislation, to be introduced by Gottheimer and Republican New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith. The legislation would bar New York from getting some federal transportation grants if it doesn’t exempt New Jersey motorists from the fee or, in addition, allow New Jersey residents to deduct the fee on their taxes. Pascrell said they also sent a letter to Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo urging him to consider sharing some of the revenue for transit needs in New Jersey. “Our taxpayers already contribute to the billions in federal transportation dollars that New York subways get every year,” Gottheimer said. “Not to mention what many of our residents pay in New York income taxes and what we spend in New York restaurants and in their stores and on their shows. New York just can’t come along and take an additional two-by-four to our head, just because they feel like it.” Motorists traveling from New Jersey pay up to $15, if they pay cash, to cross the George Washington Bridge or go through the Lincoln or Holland tunnels into New York. Since both tunnels empty out into the congestion zone, it’s expected those commuters will receive a credit for the toll they’re already paying. The George Washington Bridge enters Manhattan further north, above the congestion zone, and motorists there likely won’t receive a credit. That raises the specter of thousands of cars shifting from the bridge to the tunnels, both of which already are the site of daily gridlock. At a separate event Wednesday, Cuomo said the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the bridge and tunnels, should implement cashless tolling at those locations to enable that data to be read and an appropriate toll charged when a vehicle enters the congestion zone. He also downplayed suggestions of an interstate feud. “There is no New Jersey-New York tension,” he said. “We’re not calling out the militia, New York navy crossing the Hudson. We don’t have a navy.” More than 190,000 cars per day entered New York via the three crossings in January, according to the most recent data compiled by the Port Authority. Commuters who drive also could migrate to public transportation, but that risks placing further strain on New Jersey Transit, the state’s problem-plagued rail system that Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy called “a national disgrace” before he took office last year. Nat Bottigheimer, New Jersey Director for the Regional Plan Association, an urban research and advocacy organization, noted that the fee roll-out, if handled poorly, could have negative effects on drivers and public transit. “But assuming New Jersey drivers who pay tolls to enter Manhattan are credited somehow for the tolls they pay on bridges and tunnels, New Jersey commuters — the vast majority of whom take bus or rail transit — will benefit from improvements made to MTA or from reduced auto congestion on bus routes across the river,” he said in an email.  

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin Assembly Republicans worked Monday to trump Democratic Gov. Tony Evers’ plan to spend $10 million on electric vehicle charging stations in the state budget, announcing their own bill to set up the stations. Republicans and Evers have been stealing each other’s ideas for months in a battle to rob the other side of headlines and campaign talking points. Republicans in February co-opted Evers’ middle-class tax cut proposal with their own bill. The only difference was the GOP wanted to cover the cut with the state surplus and Evers wanted to pay for it by capping tax credits for manufacturers. Evers ultimately vetoed the GOP proposal . Evers, for his part, issued an executive order in March calling for state agencies to remove the term “mental retardation” from their regulations after he learned Republicans were working on a bill that would accomplish the same goal. Republican Rep. Adam Neylon on Monday held a news conference to announce a package of legislation centered on renewable energy. One of the bills calls for creating grants to build charging stations along Wisconsin interstates. Neylon said the proposal would use $10 million from Wisconsin’s share of a $2.9 billion national settlement that Volkswagen agreed to pay in 2016 for selling vehicles equipped with software designed to cheat federal emission tests. Evers proposed spending $10 million from the settlement on charging stations in his state budget, which he introduced in February. Neylon didn’t immediately return a follow-up message left at his Capitol office by The Associated Press after the news conference seeking comment on why the bill duplicates Evers’ proposal. The actual bill hasn’t been released yet, but Neylon aide Joe Zapf said the language will be more specific than Evers’ plan, which doesn’t lay out where the charging stations should be built. Evers spokeswoman Melissa Baldauff didn’t immediately return an email from the AP. Another bill in the package would subsidize 50% of residential customers’ renewable energy costs. Neylon estimated the subsidies would cost $7 million to $8 million over the first year. He said the money would come out of Focus on Energy, a program in which more than 100 utilities pay into a fund that offsets the cost of energy technology upgrades that improve efficiency. The third bill would set out $500,000 in grants to reimburse employers for training workers in solar and wind energy systems. The money would come from the state Department of Workforce Development’s Fast Forward program, which supplies money for worker training grants. The last bill calls for expanding electronic recycling programs. Neylon did not have any dollar estimates for that proposal. The bills’ prospects are unclear. Kit Beyer and Julie Lund, both aides to Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, attended the news conference and handed out news releases summarizing the package, indicating Vos is on board. Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald’s spokesman, Alec Zimmerman, said Senate Republicans have yet to discuss the bills as a caucus.  

DALLAS — Drivewyze has completed its service site rollout in Missouri at all 19 weigh stations across the state. Drivewyze PreClear weigh station bypass is now operational at all Missouri locations, delivering weigh station bypass opportunities to its customers driving in the state. “Our bypass service network is second to none in Missouri,” said Brian Heath, president and CEO of Drivewyze. “Drivewyze is the largest provider of weigh station bypass service by a factor of almost two — with more than 750 service sites in North America. By providing more bypass opportunities than our competitors, we enable our customers to earn a higher safety return on investment than anyone else in the industry. The time has never been better for carriers to adopt weigh station bypass, or switch away from transponder-based systems. Now, they can maximize our bypass services in Missouri and enjoy the same extended coverage of our transponder-free services offer across the country.” The final four activated Missouri Drivewyze sites are located in Kearney (northbound), Platte City (northbound), and Willow Springs (both east and westbound). Kearney is on I-35, northeast of Kansas City (between Kansas City and Des Moines, Iowa); Platte City is on I-29, northwest of Kansas City (between KC and Omaha, Nebraska); and Willow Springs is on Highway 60/63, southeast of Springfield. “Missouri is a centralized state in the U.S., home to major trucking lanes connecting the west and east coasts,” Heath said. “With hundreds of trucking companies based in the state, we are pleased to offer state-wide services to all carriers operating in Missouri, as well as those passing through. This is another step forward for Drivewyze — and our customers — and we look forward to continue revolutionizing the freight industry with world-class service and technology. More bypasses not only improve a carrier’s bottom line, it makes a positive impact on driver’s lives.” Carriers can eliminate the cost and administration of traditional transponders with Drivewyze. The Drivewyze PreClear weigh station bypass service is integrated with existing in-cab equipment like electronic logging devices, smartphones, tablets and other in-cab telematics systems. Customers can now receive bypass opportunities in 42 states and two Canadian provinces. The Drivewyze PreClear weigh station bypass application is available on a number of Drivewyze partner platforms, including Omnitracs, Orbcomm, PeopleNet, Transflo, Rand McNally, Platform Science, ISAAC and Switchboard. The application is also available for drivers to download on Android and iOS-based tablets or smartphones. Fleets can request a free weigh station activity report to help them determine how much time and money they could save by using Drivewyze PreClear. Drivewyze comes with a free Weigh Station Heads-Up service for real-time notifications at more than 1,200 weigh stations and inspection sites nationwide. To learn more about Drivewyze, please visit www.drivewyze.com. 8

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Pilot Flying J will conduct its first-ever National Hiring Day on May 2 – the largest in-person and virtual hiring event in the company’s history. Gearing up for the influx of travelers this summer, the company aims to hire more than 5,000 new team members across its network of more than 750 travel centers in the U.S. and Canada. Pilot Flying J invites job seekers to experience and explore what it means to be part of the Pilot Flying J team with on-the-spot in-person and virtual interviews. “Making the decision to start a career at Pilot Flying J provides the opportunity to work hard, have fun and live up to one’s full potential, while also advancing professionally,” said Paul Shore, chief people officer of Pilot Flying J. “Hiring 5,000 enthusiastic team members to join our company in a wide array of positions across North America is an exciting challenge, especially during a time of low unemployment. To help candidates get a feel for our values and culture, learn about the great benefits we offer and find the right job opportunity, we can’t rely on standard outreach. That’s why we’re inviting everyone to join us on National Hiring Day.” Shore said Pilot Flying J is seeking hands-on, high energy individuals with a people-first service mentality. Candidates are invited to visit all Pilot and Flying J travel centers and Truck Care service centers on Thursday, May 2, from 10 a.m.-8 p.m. for on-the-spot interviews and information. To make it easier for candidates to learn more and apply wherever they are, the company also is offering virtual job tours and interviews available at pilotflyingj.com/hiringday. Open positions include: Travel center leadership and entry level part-time and full-time roles in quick-service restaurants, deli, retail and maintenance Truck Care mechanics and certified technicians Professional drivers for fuel transport, DEF, crude and refined fuel The company is hiring an average of 10 positions per location with some states adding more, including Illinois, Ohio, Texas, Tennessee and Virginia. For technology candidates, Pilot Flying J is hosting Tech Night, a meet-and-greet at the company’s support center and headquarters in Knoxville. On May 2 from 5-7 p.m., interested individuals are invited to bring their resumes, meet the company’s IT leaders, enjoy light refreshments and learn more about the growing Technology Innovation department. The company plans to hire 55 professionals in technology fields, including mobile developers, data scientists, engineers and more. Pilot Flying J promotes a team member-first culture and offers both part-time and full-time team members benefits, such as weekly pay, tuition assistance, 401(k) participation, dental and vision plans and paid time off. On average, the starting salary for hourly, entry-level employees at Pilot Flying J travel centers is $10.75 per hour, $3.50 more than the federal minimum wage. Comprehensive and affordable medical plans are also available to full-time team members, including a $10 per week plan for Travel Center team members, and access to no-cost medical consultations with Teledoc. In addition, team members enjoy unique perks, including free beverages and 50% off on deli and made-in-house PJ Fresh meals while at work. “Giving back to the communities in which the company operates has been a core value of Pilot Flying J since the beginning. Team members are encouraged to take part in volunteer opportunities, fundraising efforts and other philanthropic activities in support of their local communities,” Shore said. For more information about National Hiring Day events, visit pilotflyingj.com/hiringday. To learn more about the company, benefits and view open positions, go to jobs.pilotflyingj.com. Pilot Flying J has more than 750 retail locations in 44 states, Roadside assistance available at over 135 locations nationwide and growing as part of its Truck Care program, 44 Goodyear Commercial Tire and Service Centers, and 34 Boss Shops. The Pilot Flying J network provides drivers with access to more than 72,000 parking spaces for trucks with Prime Parking at more than 400 locations, 5,200 deluxe showers and more than 6,200 diesel lanes with 5,200 offering diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) at the pump. Pilot Flying J is currently ranked No. 14 on Forbes’ list of America’s largest private companies. Visit www.pilotflyingj.com for more information.      

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Landstar System Inc., a worldwide, asset-light provider of integrated transportation management solutions delivering specialized transportation services, presented the 2018 Rookie of the Year Award to independent Landstar agent J. Marshall Mizell during Landstar’s Annual Agent Convention held in Marco Island, Florida, this month. Landstar defines a rookie as an independent agent who is new to the Landstar network but not necessarily new to the transportation industry. Mizell, of MM Transportation LLC, based in Pearson, Georgia, joined the Landstar network after several years on the open road as an owner-operator. Mizell decided to turn his experience as a professional truck driver into his strength as an independent Landstar agent in October 2017. “The customers Marshall hauled for as a professional truck owner-operator became his first customers as an independent Landstar agent,” said Landstar President and CEO Jim Gattoni. “His respect for the road has helped Marshall develop loyal relationships with customers and Landstar business capacity owners.” Since opening, MM Transportation LLC has generated more than $2.6 million in Landstar revenue with no cargo claims or preventable accidents. Landstar Rookie of the Year Award recipients must be part of Landstar for less than two years, demonstrate an outstanding revenue performance and encompass excellence in customer service. Nominees for the 2018 award joined Landstar between July 1, 2017, and June 30, 2018. Landstar System Inc. is an asset-light provider of integrated transportation management solutions delivering safe, specialized transportation services to a broad range of customers utilizing a network of agents, third-party capacity owners and employees.

ST. PAUL, Minn. — Motorists will be required to use hands-free devices to talk on the phone while driving on Minnesota roads starting Aug. 1 under a bill that Gov. Tim Walz signed Friday to crack down on the growing problem of distracted driving. Walz paid tribute to dozens of people surrounding him at the ceremony who held pictures of loved ones they lost in crashes caused by distracted drivers. He said he knows their pain will never leave, but that lives will be saved because of their years of sharing heartbreaking stories to pass the law. Minnesota is joining 16 other states and the District of Columbia with similar laws. “We will reduce deaths,” Walz said. “Sons will come home. Mothers will come home. Our children and grandchildren will come home because of the work that you did.” The new law marks an important bipartisan success for the Democratic governor and a Legislature divided between a Democratic-controlled House and Republican-controlled Senate. More diplomacy will critical for resolving the big partisan differences that remain on taxes and spending if lawmakers are going to complete their work by the May 20 deadline. Vijay Dixit, of Eden Prairie, whose daughter, Shreya, died in a crash caused by a distracted driver in 2007, was there to see 12 years of his campaigning become law. “I hope that distracted driving, which was a tongue-twister in 2007, will disappear from the face of this earth over the next few years that we have this law in place,” he said. The chief author in the House, Democrat Frank Hornstein, of Minneapolis, said the “courage, perseverance and dignity” of the survivors changed hearts and minds at the Capitol. The converts included the chief Senate author, Republican Scott Newman, of Hutchinson, who said he didn’t support the proposal four years ago but came to realize after hearing the families’ stories that he was in a position to make a difference. The law bars motorists from holding and using cellphones or other wireless devices while driving. Built-in Bluetooth systems meet the legal requirements that systems be voice-activated, but so do cheap hands-free mounts sold by many stores and online retailers. There’s an exception for emergency calls. Drivers can still use GPS navigation apps, stream music and listen to podcasts if they’re voice activated or if they start them up while they’re still parked. The penalty for a first offense will be a $50 fine, rising to $275 for additional violations. Minnesota already bans texting and emailing while driving. Separate legislation has already passed the Senate to stiffen existing penalties for texting while driving. That bill would also treat drivers who kill or injure someone while texting or talking on a non-hands-free phone more like drunken drivers with felony-level penalties. But the measure is still in committee in the House, where it’s unclear if it will pass this year. According to the Department of Public Safety, at least 27 of Minnesota’s approximately 380 traffic deaths last year were related to distractions of all kinds, and officials consider cellphones the fastest-growing distraction. Col. Matt Langer, chief of the State Patrol, said the real toll from distracted driving is likely higher. Langer called on Minnesotans to start complying with the law now rather than waiting for it to take effect Aug. 1. The department will now launch a public education campaign using $700,000 in federal funds so that all Minnesota drivers learn what they need to do to comply with the law.      

PHOENIX — Traffic stops by sheriff’s deputies in metropolitan Phoenix have dropped by more than half since a federal judge found the department was racially profiling Latinos in then-Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s immigration crackdowns, and ordered a massive overhaul to rid it of biased policing. With the agency still under court supervision, deputies worry their reasons for pulling over motorists will be unfairly scrutinized or they’ll face internal affairs investigations, according to Arpaio’s successor, Sheriff Paul Penzone, and several other people interviewed. “It all stems from this fear and mentality that the court orders were intended to do harm to the office, instead of improving the quality of the office,” Penzone told The Associated Press. Traffic stops by Maricopa County sheriff’s deputies have fallen 52% from 2015 to 2018, according to figures provided to the AP by the department. The dramatic decline — from 31,700 stops in 2015 to 15,200 in 2018 — raises questions about whether officers are missing evidence of illegal drugs, burglaries and other crimes that are sometimes discovered when pulling over motorists. Penzone conceded officers may be missing criminal activity but emphasized it’s unacceptable for them to back away from their bread-and-butter duties. The latest publicly available traffic-stop analysis for the agency by Arizona State University criminal justice researchers found deputies have made improvements but are still more likely to search and arrest Hispanic drivers than white drivers. Brad Ruehle, president of a group representing the sheriff’s deputies, declined to comment on the decrease in traffic stop. Others said it’s normal for enforcement numbers to decline after a major ruling involving law enforcement. The agency has been under court supervision since a judge concluded in 2013 that sheriff’s deputies racially profiled Latinos in Arpaio’s traffic patrols that targeted immigrants. The traffic stop figures go back only to 2015 because the agency adopted a new record-keeping system, and earlier figures don’t contain enough detail to make a comparison. The overhaul includes retraining officers on making constitutional stops, establishing an alert system to spot problematic behavior by officers, equipping deputies with body cameras and holding interventions with officers flagged for having statistical differences from their peers in how they treated Latinos. The judge in the profiling case also ordered an extensive overhaul of the agency’s internal affairs operations, which under Arpaio’s leadership had been criticized for biased decision-making that allowed sheriff’s officials to escape accountability. While the agency is improving its compliance with the overhaul, the traffic-stop analysis covering encounters with motorists from July 2016 through June 2017 still found Hispanic drivers are more likely to be searched and arrested by deputies than white drivers. The average length of stops for Hispanic drivers is three minutes longer than for white drivers. John Shjarback, a criminal justice professor at the University of Texas at El Paso, said it’s normal to see a drop in enforcement numbers after a major court decision or a major event involving a police agency, such as a high-profile shooting involving officers. New York saw a decline in stops after a judge ruled in 2013 that the city’s practice of stopping and frisking people without justification violated the civil rights of minorities. The number of stop-and-frisk encounters in the city fell from 685,000 in 2011 to 11,000 in 2018. Shjarback said it’s an open question among researchers about whether such drops in enforcement lead to increases in crime. David A. Harris, a law professor at the University of Pittsburgh who studies racial profiling and wrote a book on the subject, said such decreases are the result of agencies moving away from blanket-enforcement approaches that emphasize the volume of arrests, not the quality of arrests. Harris said officers are being forced to do better work. “Now, they actually have to think about whether that’s a good idea, and I don’t think that’s a bad idea at all,” Harris said. Joe Clure, executive director of the Arizona Police Association, which advocates on issues affecting officers, said Maricopa County sheriff’s deputies have complained to him for years about the court supervision. Clure said deputies’ self-preservation instincts kick in when they think they are being unfairly scrutinized. “It’s just human nature,” Clure said. “You don’t want to do anything to get caught under the microscope.” The hundreds of internal affairs investigations that have been launched also are discouraging the sheriff’s patrol deputies and jail officers from taking the initiative in their work, Clure said. Detention officers, for instance, are doing fewer searches of inmates and cells because they fear being targeted in protracted internal investigations that could make it harder for them to find work at other police agencies, Clure said. “The reality is that Judge (Murray) Snow is the actual sheriff in Maricopa County right now,” Clure said, referring to the federal judge who delivered the racial profiling verdict and ordered the agency overhaul. State Sen. John Kavanagh, a former police officer who is an ally of Arpaio, said the traffic stop decrease means taxpayers aren’t getting everything they paid for. Kavanagh doesn’t blame officers for making fewer stops but rather an oversight system that he said accuses deputies of being racist. He said it was easy to predict the result of officers facing what they see as unfair scrutiny: “You get less work.” Kathy Brody, one of the American Civil Liberties Union attorneys leading the profiling case against the sheriff’s office, said she wasn’t advocating for the sheriff’s office to make more traffic stops but said the trend is a poor reflection on the agency. In the past, immigrant rights advocates had argued that the agency under Arpaio pulled over Latinos for minor traffic violations, such as having a broken tail light. “Our view is that they should be pulling people over for things that can cause a danger to the community,” Brody said.        

DENVER — The human trafficking problem and what Truckers Against Trafficking (TAT) is doing to help combat the epidemic is being spotlighted in Denver May 2 during the 97th annual convention of the Association of Junior Leagues International. Titled “Hidden in Plain Sight, the Multi-Faceted Human Trafficking Epidemic,” the conference will include presentations by trafficking survivors, executives of human trafficking organizations and others, along with a visit by TAT’s Freedom Drivers Project, the organization’s traveling exhibit to educate the public and others on the grim realities of human trafficking across the U.S. and how the trucking industry is working to stamp out the problem. The event is being held at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel, 1550 Court Place. The conference will run from 1 to 6 p.m. and the Freedom Drivers Project, which is inside the specially kitted out trailer of an 18-wheeler, will be open from 1 to 3 p.m.