Are the garbage trucks at Richard's Disposal safe to drive? A federal lawsuit accuses the company of firing a driver who dared to report several trucks were not safe to drive.
Euric Horne sued Richard's Disposal, Mike Walker, Jerome Kelly, and Alvin Richard, Jr. in U.S. District Court on February 10. The individuals are company officials.
The plaintiff began working at Richard's Disposal in January 2024. Horne's employment was uneventful until May 20. The complaint alleges:
27. On May 20, 2024, at approximately 6:15 A.M., before the shift began, Horne did a pre-trip inspection of the truck assigned to him for the day. Horne informed supervisor Jerome Kelly that the truck had a defective hopper. 28. Kelly assigned a second truck to Horne. Horne did a pre-trip inspection and found the truck's brake lights, strobe lights, and one headlight were non-functional. Horne reported to Kelly that this truck was in violation of US DOT regulations.The complaint charges Richard's supervisors ignored the (alleged) problems:
29. Kelly did not repair this truck or take it out of service that morning, but instead assigned it to another driver who was willing to drive it in violation of US DOT regulations. 30. Kelly assigned a third truck to Horne. Horne did a pre-trip inspection and found the truck's hub seal was leaking lubricant. Horne reported to Kelly that this truck was in violation of US DOT regulations.
31. Kelly assigned a fourth truck to Horne. This truck was in working order, except that it needed hydraulic oil. Horne prepared to take this truck on his route.
For his troubles, the complaint alleges, Richard's sent Horne home while he was in line waiting to collect fluid for the truck. Richard's allegedly did not call Horne back to work until May 24. Horne worked "without incident" until May 30:
41. On May 30, 2024, Horne was assigned to truck 810. During the route, the hydraulic line burst on the street. 42. Horne reported this accident to supervisor Mike Walker. 43. Walker instructed Horne to complete his route using truck 018. 44. Horne informed Walker that O18 was leaking hydraulic oil, and should not be driven. 45. Walker refused to allow Horne not to drive this truck, and Horne reluctantly drove 018 on the route. 46. Shortly thereafter, at approximately 5:30 pm, the truck broke down on the route. Horne called to report the break down, and was instructed to make certain attempts to fix the truck. These efforts did not succeed. 47. Horne told Walker that he (Horne) should never have been sent out on that truck, and that he was tired of being asked to drive trucks that were in violation of USDOT regulations and unsafe. Richard's fired Horne on June 4 for "insubordination" on May 30.
The complaint charges Richard's Disposal violated the Surface Transportation Assistance Act that protects whistleblowers. The ACT bars employers from firing employees who report commercial vehicle safety violations or refusing to drive in unsafe conditions. Horne claims this is exactly what happened.
Horne seeks back pay, reinstatement, compensatory damages, and punitive damages as well as attorney's fees.
Richard's Disposal denied Horne's allegations and said any vehicle problems were corrected and no employee was forced to operate an unsafe vehicle.
Attorney Joel Dillard represents the plaintiff while Romaine Richards represents Richard's Disposal.
The case is assigned to U.S. District Judge Kristi Johnson.
Kingfish note: Chewing gum, chicken wire, and bondo?
Anthony Warren to suddenly discover story in 3,2,1.....
Posted below: Complaint and answer.
19 comments:
Their maintenance budget is used to grease palms. Right? Right?
You forget that you are in the deep south, so they used duct tape and baling wire... maybe a length of water hose while they were at it.
I’m shocked. Truly, truly shocked.
Actually, if you drive behind a Richard's truck on 220, you'll see how technologically advanced they are; rivalling a Tesla even.
Richard's Disposal has trucks that are able to automatically lighten their trash load as they are driven on the interstate. This results in higher fuel efficiency, less component wear, and increases the mulching and (as yet unproven beneficial) microplastic fertilization in the greenish median areas.
Could this be an opportunity to cancel their contract based on unsafe equipment?
The hoppers on the Richards' trucks in my neighborhood are the best! I tip them every now and then, and I get great service. I have no information about the condition of their trucks.
They should’ve bought Isuzu, Mitsubishi Fuso, or some other Japanese heavy truck. Those things last forever just like their light trucks!
like many things in jackson, maintenance is an abstract concept.
Entire maintenance wnet to the IT support !
I would have fired him also. Just too many things he found were small problems and should have been taken care by the driver.
Chokwe - The gift that keeps on giving.
https://safer.fmcsa.dot.gov/CompanySnapshot.aspx
Multiple searches on the FMCSA website and no sign of them.
Richards's Disposal of Jackson MS, INC
Richards Disposal, Inc
plus additional other variations of the above.
What are they registered as?
What are the numbers on the door of the trucks?
In Mississippi all the trucks on the road are above average.
Better than Mexico.
Mississippi and Louisiana are both in the 12 states which do not require USDOT registration for commercial trucks used intrastate.
Like!
Richard's Disposal faced significant issues in New Orleans, primarily centered on severe service delays, thousands of missed trash pickups, missing EPA requirements, and intense legal/contractual disputes
If you play with a rattlesnake it’s kind of on you if you get bitten
Thanks Mr Radical New City Mayor
I'll never understand why the trash contract wasn't the cornerstone of the federal case against Lumumba. No one fights that hard for a contract unless there's bribes involved, and it was hilariously blatant.
You should petition the Blog for a complete season of reruns.
This case has been assigned to a Trump-appointed judge who is a member of the Federalist Society. This will probably be the last whistle Mr. Horne blows as there’s no chance in hell that Her Honor will let this case proceed.
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