KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The line of duty death of Loudon Co. Sheriff's Sgt. Chris Jenkins in early 2022 sparked a call to action.
Since then, Tennessee legislators have passed a law in his name that requires motorists to secure loose items in their truck beds or trailers.
"It may not seem like that big of a thing, but there are obviously a lot of very negative consequences if people are not securing anything in their open vehicles," Mark Nagi, TDOT spokesperson, said.
Nagi said loose items can litter the roadways and create dangers for drivers.
"Unfortunately, you can see loose material that has flown out of a car on our interstates and state routes every day if you drive around," he said.
The law, HB 0353, states that "A motor vehicle that is specifically transporting a ladder for either residential or commercial purposes must be secured..."
A violation of this law would result in a Class C Misdemeanor, something that's punishable with up to 30 days in jail. However, if the fallen ladder causes any death or bodily injury, it could be bumped up to a class A Misdemeanor.
"It's an unfortunate, totally preventable thing, but it happened," State Rep. Sam McKenzie said. "And the good news is we responded appropriately, and that his life did not go in vain."
In November 2023, the driver of accused of hitting and killing Sgt. Jenkins pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide. The owner of the ladder pleaded "no contest" to charges related to the death of Sgt. Jenkins.
"Whoever that that ladder belongs to, I'm sure when they left their house, they had no intention that that would cause a death," McKenzie said. "But we got to think about that, you have to think these things through."
Even in death, Sgt. Jenkins is still doing his duty to protect and serve our community through this law in his name.