FOX 2 St. Louis anchor Shirley Washington introduced the story as a serious safety issue with a blunt detail at the center of it: a truck driver was pulled over for driving the wrong way on Highway 61 in Lincoln County, Missouri, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol says the driver could not identify road signs required to hold a commercial driver’s license.
Co-anchor Mandy Murphey then brought in FOX 2 reporter Chad Mira, asking what kind of punishment the driver is facing, because the situation sounds dangerous but also complicated.
Mira said he was told that at the local level, there isn’t much prosecutors can do beyond issuing a couple of citations, and the driver’s license was taken away until he can retest and pass. But Mira added that after troopers inspected the truck, multiple federal agencies began getting involved, including ICE.
That shift – from a traffic stop to a broader federal interest – happened quickly in Mira’s reporting, and it shows how one moment on a highway can open up questions that go far beyond one citation.
A Viral Wrong-Way Video And A Trooper’s Stop
Mira said he couldn’t show the video on air, but he noted it has gone viral online, showing a Somali truck driver traveling for miles the wrong way on Highway 61 in Lincoln County.
Sgt. Dallas Thompson of the Missouri State Highway Patrol explained what happened next in plain terms. “The trooper remained in the area, eventually saw the vehicle, the truck in question, and conducted a traffic stop on him,” Thompson said.
Mira reported that what troopers discovered after the stop is what led them to take the driver’s license away.
Thompson said the driver was unable to complete the English proficiency test.
That is the key claim in this case, because it connects directly to what commercial drivers are required to do: read road signs, follow directions, and communicate well enough to operate safely on public roads.
“He Couldn’t Comprehend Road Signs”
Mira reported that authorities say the driver couldn’t comprehend road signs and couldn’t complete the English proficiency test required to hold a commercial driver’s license.
He said the driver was cited for wrong-way driving and careless driving.
Mira also said the Lincoln County prosecutor told him those citations are essentially the limit of what can be handled locally, which is why the prosecutor notified the U.S. Department of Transportation and ICE.
One reason, Mira explained, is that officials said the driver, speaking through broken English, could not identify a place of residence.
That detail doesn’t just raise eyebrows; it raises questions about basic accountability. If a driver can’t clearly state where he lives, it becomes harder for authorities to track, contact, or ensure follow-through, especially in a case that already involved a wrong-way commercial vehicle.
It’s also where the story stops being a simple “he made a bad turn” moment. A wrong-way semi is not a harmless mistake, because the consequences can be catastrophic if another driver crests a hill at the wrong time.
How Did He Get A CDL In The First Place?
Mira posed the question that most viewers were probably already thinking: how did this driver get a commercial driver’s license if he can’t pass the English requirements?
Sgt. Thompson explained how Missouri handles it. “In Missouri, they have to be able to understand English, take the test in English, and pass the road sign test here,” he said.
Mira then reported the key wrinkle: the driver’s license was not from Missouri. It was from Minnesota.
Mira said the driver’s company is Cargo Transportation LLC, based in Hopkins, Minnesota, and he showed that attempts to reach the company by phone didn’t succeed.
That leaves a big gap in the public story. People can see the viral video, hear the highway patrol’s concerns, and then hit a wall when it comes to hearing any explanation from the employer.
And that’s often where frustration grows, because when something happens that scares the public, silence can feel like avoidance even if there’s a legal reason for it.
A Trainer Explains The Road Sign Standard
To help explain what drivers are normally tested on, Mira interviewed Troy Dennis, the driver training manager at Witte Bros. in Troy, Missouri.
Dennis said road sign testing is part of getting a permit in the first place. “You’re going to get tested on road signs just to obtain your permit, just the same as you would in your car, just a little bit more extensive testing,” he said.
Mira reported that Dennis runs a five-week course designed to make sure drivers have a strong foundation, but Dennis also made a point that complicates the bigger picture: training is not identical everywhere.
“There is no minimum required hours to record in order to obtain your CDL,” Dennis said.
That’s a striking sentence, because it hints at a system where a person can meet the bare requirements without necessarily getting the same depth of preparation another driver might get elsewhere. The rules may be federal, but the experience on the ground can still vary, depending on how and where someone is trained.
Dennis also put the safety stakes into family terms, telling Mira that every truck on the road is sharing space with “your family and mine,” and he said he wishes everyone took the responsibility that seriously.
Minnesota’s Response And A Federal Investigation
Mira said he reached out to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, and the agency told FOX 2 it doesn’t yet know the facts of the situation, but it emphasized that CDL applicants must pass testing in English.
Mira also reported a larger statistic that adds context to why this issue is getting political attention: he said the DOT has removed 11,500 drivers in the past year who failed to meet English proficiency standards.
Then the story widened again, this time into Washington-level messaging. Mira reported that U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy called the incident in Missouri “disturbing,” saying, “We will not stop until America’s roads are safe again for families.”
Mira said the U.S. Department of Transportation did not have anyone available for an interview when he reached out, but he confirmed that the DOT is now investigating Cargo Transportation LLC.
He also reported one more detail that changes how people may picture the stop: a second driver was in the sleeper area of the truck when it was pulled over, and that second driver took over once the first driver’s license was revoked.
That suggests the truck didn’t simply vanish off the road after the stop. Authorities had a way to move it safely, but it also raises another uncomfortable thought – if there was a second driver present, how did the wrong-way driving continue for miles before the stop happened?
Why This Case Is Going To Stick
Mira’s report hits a nerve because it combines three things the public does not tolerate well: a wrong-way vehicle, a large truck, and a system that looks like it failed before the danger even began.
A wrong-way semi is every driver’s nightmare, and when the explanation includes language proficiency problems, it naturally leads to questions about screening, training, and enforcement across state lines.
At the same time, the facts presented by Mira and the highway patrol don’t require exaggeration to feel alarming. A commercial driver, pulled over after a wrong-way incident, allegedly couldn’t complete an English proficiency test or identify road signs, and now local charges are limited while federal agencies step in.
If there’s a silver lining in the story as told on FOX 2, it’s that the trooper stayed in the area, located the truck, and stopped it before the situation turned into a tragedy.
But the bigger issue remains unresolved, and Mira’s reporting makes that plain: this case isn’t only about one driver. It’s about whether the system that puts commercial drivers on the road is consistently making sure they can understand signs, follow rules, and operate safely – every time, in every state, before a viral video becomes the warning.
Raised in a small Arizona town, Kevin grew up surrounded by rugged desert landscapes and a family of hunters. His background in competitive shooting and firearms training has made him an authority on self-defense and gun safety. A certified firearms instructor, Kevin teaches others how to properly handle and maintain their weapons, whether for hunting, home defense, or survival situations. His writing focuses on responsible gun ownership, marksmanship, and the role of firearms in personal preparedness.
