Arizona, California and Indiana step up truck enforcement

Commercial vehicle enforcement officers in Arizona, California and Indiana have stepped up actions aimed at unsafe trucks and unqualified drivers, according to the source material.

In Arizona, Highway Patrol troopers assigned to the Arizona Department of Public Safety’s Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Unit stopped a hotshot truck on July 8 traveling between Phoenix and Tempe. Inspectors said the truck-and-trailer combination weighed about 30,500 pounds and found the driver lacked a commercial driver’s license and a valid U.S. Department of Transportation medical certificate. Authorities also said the driver had been cited for the same violation in December 2025.

Arizona DPS said the truck’s emergency brake cable was disconnected, which led to an out-of-service order for the vehicle. The driver was cited and placed out of service. Arizona DPS said it was the carrier’s fifth inspection and fifth out-of-service violation in the past eight months.

In California, a Commercial Enforcement Officer with the California Highway Patrol’s Border Division stopped a commercial vehicle on July 7 after it bypassed the Peralta weigh station in Anaheim. A roadside inspection found cracked welds at the turntable flange and a broken main suspension leaf spring, and the truck was immediately placed out of service until repairs could be completed.

In Indiana, authorities arrested a semi driver after a multivehicle crash on July 8 at an intersection in DeMotte. The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office said investigators alleged the driver ran a red light before hitting a passenger vehicle and another tractor-trailer, seriously injuring three people, including a 3-year-old child. Investigators said the driver did not have a driver’s license or a commercial driver’s license. The sheriff’s office also said Immigration and Customs Enforcement placed an immigration detainer on the individual, and the investigation remains ongoing.