Jackknifed truck, drug abuse cost Kentucky driver his CDL

A Kentucky-licensed truck driver who jackknifed his tractor-trailer in August and has repeatedly been found incapacitated by a Schedule I controlled substance has lost the right to drive a commercial motor vehicle.

Scotty R. Kinmon was declared an imminent hazard to public safety by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. He was served the order on Dec. 4.

Kinmon jackknifed his truck on Aug. 18. He was driving his tractor-trailer west on Interstate 74 in Hamilton County, Ohio, when his vehicle slowed down, stopped and began to roll backward. The rig rolled into adjacent travel lanes, jackknifed and struck the guardrail before coming to a stop. The trailer blocked all the westbound travel lanes. Nearby motorists found Kinmon unresponsive in his truck cab.

Law enforcement and ambulance personnel treated Kinmon for an overdose of a Schedule I controlled substance. Schedule I controlled substances include marijuana, heroin, LSD, mescaline, ecstasy and other drugs.

Three days earlier, Kinmon was stopped by a police officer for impaired driving while operating a commercial vehicle in Summit County, Ohio. Kinmon failed to appear before the Ohio court on the traffic citation and an arrest warrant was issued.

The month before, in July, police officers in Cincinnati responded to an emergency call and found Kinmon slumped over in the cab of his commercial vehicle. It was later determined that Kimon had overdosed on a Schedule I controlled substance. He was arrested and found guilty of disorderly conduct by an Ohio court.

If Kinmon is found operating a commercial motor vehicle, he faces civil penalties of up to $1,811 per violation and could face criminal penalties.