Truck Drivers

Stephen Owings, whose 22-year-old son died when his car was rear-ended, is fighting to have the federal government require the use of speed-limiting devices on all big rigs, saying: "We're not against truckers; we're pro-highway safety." Most often, citizen-crusaders find themselves in lonely, unequal struggles against industry groups and lobbyists. But this time, David and Goliath seem to be on the same side. Owings has drawn support from the American Trucking Assns.

Three weeks after wrapping "Made of Honor," in which she plays the well-scrubbed best friend-true love of the equally well-scrubbed Patrick Dempsey, Michelle Monaghan got behind a big rig (sans makeup, save some bronzing) for the low-budget independent film "Trucker." The movie, which premiered last week at the Tribeca Film Festival, in search of distribution, was just the sort of no-frills experience "Made of Honor" was not.

A truck driver was sentenced to life in prison without parole Thursday for his role in the deaths of 19 people who suffocated in an airless trailer during a disastrous human smuggling attempt in 2003. Tyrone Williams put his head down, then stood stock-still as U.S. District Judge Lee Rosenthal read the jury's sentence. His lead lawyer, Craig Washington, wiped away what he later said were "tears of joy" that his client's life was spared.

An immigrant smuggler who helped organize a 2005 truck trip during which 19 people died was sentenced in Houston to 15 years in prison. Fredy Giovanni Garcia-Tobar, 31, a Guatemalan living in Harlingen, was sentenced without parole by U.S. District Judge Vanessa Gilmore. He was convicted by a jury in December 2004.

Hand-lettered signs and bumper stickers proclaiming "Stop the Trucks!" are cropping up around the Ojai Valley, and that can only mean one thing. The little town that shooed away a landfill and sent Caltrans packing is zeroing in on another Goliath-size target: gravel trucks that rumble up and down state Highway 33 nearly every day.

Prepare for congestion -- even more than usual -- on the Harbor Freeway this morning. Beginning at 8 a.m., a convoy of 100 diesel trucks plans to travel southbound in one lane of the freeway from South Los Angeles near Exposition Park, and then cross the Vincent Thomas Bridge to the Port of Long Beach, a trip expected to take about two hours. The convoy will be led by a hearse, which symbolizes premature deaths caused by pollution emitted at the port. "It could cause traffic headaches.

A truck driver who was trying to recharge his cellphone when he rammed into stopped traffic on the Indiana Toll Road, killing eight people, will not face criminal charges, a prosecutor said. Leonardo Cooksey, 32, may have been negligent in his actions on April 26, but he was not criminally responsible, Elkhart County Prosecutor Curtis T. Hill Jr. said.

Wazir Ali makes $1,000 a month if he's lucky, carrying bags of rice, wheat or sugar from one city to another in western Pakistan. He sees his truck more often than his wife, and he wants it to look pretty. So Ali, 36, spent about $3,300 on paint and metal designs. His truck is now being covered with fancy murals, scenes of a sailor rescuing a boy in the ocean, a boy holding a pet goat, Indian film stars, and a peacock on a pink background.

Truck drivers -- the people who deliver our food, cars and clothing -- have one of the most dangerous jobs in America -- accounting for nearly 15% of U.S. work-related deaths. And that's only counting the accidents. They are also more at risk for a number of health problems, including obesity, sleep apnea and the effects of smoking. The latest research in an upcoming report may help influence government regulations for truck drivers' health.

Senior managers for defense contractor KBR overruled calls to halt supply operations in Iraq in the spring of 2004, ordering unarmored trucks into an active combat zone where six civilian drivers died in an ambush, according to newly available documents. Company e-mails and other internal communications reveal that before KBR dispatched the convoy, a chorus of security advisors predicted an increase in roadside bombings and attacks on Iraq's highways. They recommended suspension of convoys.