Move over for public safety vehicles – it's the law

CANFIELD

Ohio State Highway Patrol Trooper Ken Robbins described his experience with a distracted driver from July as one of his worst fears.

A mangled patrol cruiser was on display at the Canfield Fair for the Wednesday afternoon news conference “Move Over, Slow Down,” to show the aftermath of failing to move over for public safety vehicles.

Robbins, a husband and father of two boys, was involved in his second accident in 25 years on the job in July when truck driver Glenn Blank, 73, of Baden, Pa., lost control of his vehicle, striking Robbins’s cruiser while Robbins was speaking with a tow-truck driver.

“It shook me up really bad,” Robbins said. “I can still see it, smell it and hear it.”

According to the accident report, Robbins heard the truck coming, pushed the tow-truck driver out of the way and was struck by his own cruiser. He suffered minor injuries and is back on the job.

Robbins was involved in another accident involving a semi-truck in 2008.

“It’s common courtesy and decency to just get over,” he said.

Not only is it a courtesy, but it’s also a law, said OSHP Canfield Post Commander Lt. Jerad Sutton.

Read more about it in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.