State v. Speicher
State v. Speicher
Opinion of the Court
The defendants were charged in separate complaints with violating section 39-6,179 (1) (b), R. S. Supp., 1978, which prohibits the operation of a tractor and semitrailer having a combined length in excess of 60 feet. The defendants were found guilty in county court and the judgments were affirmed in the District Court. They have now appealed to this court.
The parties stipulated that the tractor and semitrailer operated by the defendant Speicher was 64 feet in length and the tractor and semitrailer operated by the defendant Herrick was 63 feet, 11 inches in length.
The defendants claim that the vehicles which they were operating were a combination of a truck and trailer which under the statute may be 65 feet in length. § 39-6,179 (1) (c), R. S. Supp., 1978. Section 39-602, R. S. Supp., 1978, defines a semitrailer, trailer, truck, and truck-tractor as follows: “(88)
A photograph of the vehicle operated by the defendant Herrick is in evidence. It is apparent that the vehicle was a tractor and semitrailer with a box approximately the size of the cab located behind the cab of the tractor. The box was equipped with doors and was of sufficient size that property could be carried in it. The defendant contends that the addition of the box required the tractor to be classified as a truck because the tractor could now be used to carry a load other than a part of the weight of the trailer drawn by it.
The difficulty with the defendant’s theory is that the statute defines a truck as a motor vehicle designed, used, or maintained primarily for the transportation of property. It is obvious that the use of the vehicle to haul objects in the box behind the cab was incidental to the primary use of the vehicle which was to draw trailers. Since the vehicle was designed and primarily used for drawing other vehicles, it was a truck-tractor under the statute.
The record indicates that photographs of the vehicle operated by the defendant Speicher were fur
The judgments are affirmed.
Affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- State of Nebraska v. Delwyn L. Speicher and Elmer J. Herrick
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published