Making the Road a Safer Place for Truckers

Michael’s Law Amendment is another step closer to reality. Named in honor of Michael Boeglin, who was killed while parked in an abandoned warehouse lot in June of 2014, Michael’s Law Amendment is aimed at ensuring states recognize and grant reciprocity for concealed carry laws.

Truck drivers face a multitude of dangers while traveling across our great nation. Some of these dangers are inherent risks we all take every time we sit behind our steering wheel. Other risks are more associated with traveling long distances by oneself and in areas they may not know or be used to. Sleeping in the cab of a tractor on the side of the road or in an empty lot can be eerie, and there’s nowhere to hide if something goes wrong or an emergency arises.

What the general population doesn’t understand is that truckers don’t work set schedules. Because they are typically paid per mile driven, and government regulations control their work availability, stopping at the next town to find a hotel isn’t always an option. Stopping because it’s night isn’t always an option, either. Truck stops are few and far between and truckers often find themselves sleeping wherever they can find a spot big enough for their equipment.

Without knowing what potential hazards lay around them, most truck drivers carry a weapon. While most times this is legal within the state they reside, that’s not always the same case in the states they’re traveling through. Michael Boeglin wasn’t carrying a weapon because of Detroit’s policy against guns. His wife and unborn child were left alone when Michael was shot at close range, unable to defend himself. His wife and parents are sure that Michael would still be alive today if state reciprocity laws were in effect.

Introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives in January by Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC), a slightly different variation of the bill was introduced into the U.S. Senate by Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), on March 1. With the aid of a Congress friendly to 2^nd Amendment rights, the road could become much safer, or at least give truckers the means to protect themselves, moving forward.