Chris Kitts was pulled over for using his phone while it was in his hand, in violation of a provision in the state trucking law at Title 55. The East Ridge, Tenn., officer, Cpl. Terry Prescott was enforcing the transportation and shipping law on a Texan in who was almost certainly not using the Tennessee road for hire. Mr. Kitts fired a pistol at Officer Prescott, slightly wounding him, and was slain in a gunfight later that day. East Ridge city government is under administrative notice as of May 24, 2018, about the limits of that law, Tenn. Code Ann. Title 55, motor and other vehicles, and also of T.C.A. Title 65, carriers. It does not have authority to enforce either of these laws, which are administered by the departments of revenue and safety. The hands-free phone law applies, effectively, to truckers. The notice is intended to save officers from their most dangerous encounter, that of traffic stops (so-called), which are more perilous to officer health than domestic calls.
