Ticket And No Employment For 2+ Years.

Hello. I just signed up to this site, hoping for some answers from those in the know and willing to share some knowledge.

I got my cdl in NC about 4 1/2 years ago. First and only job was delivering building materials driving many different trucks. Class a, b, auto, manual with a moffett on the back most of the time. I worked this job for 2 years.

I quit, spend 6 months fixing my house, sold it & moved from NC to MO and have been doing everything but working for money for the last 2 years. So for the last 2 1/2 years, I've been unemployed.

I recently got a ticket for the first time in 20 years. Improper lane use or some BS like that. There was a sign I didn't see along with a cop I didn't see & bada-bing, the two formed an alliance against me and they together produced ticket for me.

Here are my questions: 1. Am I stuck with this ticket? Is this anti-masking law going to prevent me from keeping the points off my cdl? 2. Do I have too much time between employment (2 1/2 yrs) to just jump back into driving? 3. If I am stuck with this ticket, and if it's been too long since I've driven and need to take a refresher course, and if job prospects are low (seemingly very poor economy and getting worse), should I turn in my cdl and get my old class c back so I can keep this ticket off my class c, not having to worry about this anti-masking law anymore?

Mike, everybody has "life baggage" of one sort or another.

Q. #1: Speeding ticket. These mostly are done on a case-by-case basis. I got a 15-over speeding ticket about a month before I hired on to Swift's training Academy. Had a surgically clean driving record before that (and still do). But the ticket had no affect on getting a truck driving job.

Q. #2: I assume your "2 1/2 years" is for CDL driving? You will need to get a refresher course. If it is for unemployment or personal reasons, be ready to explain yourself and maybe have some documentation.

Q. #3: I don't know what you mean here. A ticket is a ticket, regardless of what you were driving at the time. If your CDL is still "good", and you don't get a CDL job, it's a good idea to keep up with the required physicals. That will keep your CDL status going, but you may have to deal with Question #1 down the road.

I would definitely hire an attorney to fight the ticket. Worst case scenario you’ll end up with a reduced ticket depending on state and past driving history.

Never ever turn in that CDL. You would then have to do entire exams over if u change ur mind later.

The unemployment could be an issue. Any unemployment, not just trucking. Apply everywhere... fight the ticket.

Dont go to recruiters with "the sign i didnt see conspured with the cop i didnt see".

You are a CDL holder. It is your job to see the sign. Protect your CDL at any and all costs. It could make you hundreds of thoudands of dollars someday.

Thank all 3 of you for your feedback. I don't get emails from TT for some reason and I forgot I wrote this. They dropped the ticket. Actually, they treated it like I had a regular license becuase the cop failed to write down anything at all. They changed the number to something like 106 something and it's like a mechanical error. I went to court 3 times, with the last one being yesterday, and they dropped it and were able to offer the sis in a plea as if I didn't have a cdl , so I'm on 6 month probation, no points and $50 for court costs. I did speak with an attorney and he said $500 for a 50/50 shot at getting me out of this. Perhaps I'll apply that $500 to a refresher course so I can land a decent local cdl a or b job.