Inclusion Criteria

For purposes of this memorial, a CVSA North American Standard-certified inspector is an individual who fulfills all the following requirements:

• Is certified through approved CVSA training programs
• Is directly employed by, or officially commissioned/assigned to a qualifying governmental agency such as a local, state, provincial, territorial, or federal government agency in Canada, Mexico or the U.S.
• Is authorized by statute, regulation, or documented agency policy or formal designation to conduct commercial motor vehicle safety enforcement
• Performs duties that include enforcement of commercial motor vehicle safety laws and regulations, including but not limited to:
  • North American Standard Inspection Procedures
  • Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations
  • Hazardous Materials Regulations

Eligible inspectors may be:

• Full-time or part-time employees;
• Employees performing commercial motor vehicle enforcement as a primary duty or a formally assigned secondary duty with documented inspection and enforcement responsibilities.

If commercial motor vehicle enforcement is not the inspector’s primary assignment, the inspector must have been actively engaged in one of the following:

• Field enforcement, physical inspection activity or action directly supporting such activity (e.g., documentation, evidence processing, or travel related to the inspection) at the time of the fatal injury,
• Other officially assigned public safety, law enforcement, regulatory, or emergency response duties within the scope of their employment at the time of the fatal injury.

An eligible agency is a governmental entity or formally recognized subunit thereof with direct enforcement authority that fulfills all the following requirements:

• Has statutory or regulatory authority to enforce commercial motor vehicle safety laws or regulations;
• Employs at least one CVSA NAS-certified inspector, auditor or safety investigator (e.g., new entrant auditor or Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration investigator)
• Conducts NAS inspections, safety investigations, compliance activities, audits, or related commercial motor vehicle enforcement functions.

Eligible agencies may include transportation, public safety, law enforcement, environmental, or regulatory agencies officially recognized as performing commercial motor vehicle safety enforcement duties.

Qualifying duties include, but are not limited to, activities directly tied to the execution or support of NAS inspection or enforcement operations:

• Level I – North American Standard Inspection
• Level II – Walk-Around Driver/Vehicle Inspections
• Level III – Driver/Credential/Administrative Inspections
• Level IV – Special Inspection
• Level V – Vehicle-Only Inspection
• Level VI – North American Standard Inspection for Transuranic Waste and/ Highway Route Controlled Quantities of Radioactive Material
• Level VII – Jurisdictional Mandated Commercial Motor Vehicle Inspection
• Level VIII – North American Standard Electronic Inspection

This includes enforcement actions utilizing tools or programs such as:

• Performance-based brake testers (PBBT)
• Hazardous materials enforcement activities
• Grant-funded or agency-authorized inspection technologies (e.g., drones or remote systems)

Safety and Audit Programs

Qualifying activities also include:

• Safety audits
• Safety investigations
• Special investigations

“Line of duty” means any action an inspector is obligated or authorized to perform under law, regulation, agency policy, or written conditions of employment, including actions taken against the inspector because of their official duties, whether related to commercial motor vehicle enforcement or other officially assigned public safety, law enforcement, regulatory, or emergency response functions.

This includes inspectors who are:

• Actively conducting inspections, enforcement actions, audits, or investigations
• Responding to commercial motor vehicle violations, crashes, hazardous materials incidents, active threats, critical incidents, or other public safety emergencies
• Participating in law enforcement or public safety operations (e.g., tactical operations, warrant service, emergency response, or incident support functions) when officially assigned or authorized
• Assisting the public in an official capacity
• En route directly to or from a specific inspection, enforcement, investigative assignment or other officially assigned duty without substantial personal deviation
• Operating an agency vehicle or an authorized personal vehicle (formally approved for official use) for work purposes

An inspector is considered “killed in the line of duty” when death is the direct and proximate result of an injury sustained while performing official duties within the scope of their employment, including but not limited to NAS commercial motor vehicle enforcement, public safety operations, law enforcement activities, regulatory functions, or emergency response actions (i.e., the injury was a substantial contributing factor leading to death, as supported by medical or investigative evidence).

Stress-Related Fatalities

Stress-induced medical events may qualify if all of the following conditions are met:

• The medical event occurred:
  • Immediately
  • Within 48 hours following a qualifying enforcement activity
  • During continuous hospitalization resulting from that activity
• The qualifying event involved objectively high-risk activity beyond normal inspection duties, including commercial motor vehicle enforcement or other officially assigned public safety, law enforcement, regulatory, or emergency response functions, including but not limited to:
  • Physical struggle with a noncompliant driver or motor carrier representative
  • Unusual or strenuous physical exertion beyond typical inspection activity
  • Providing emergency medical assistance at a crash scene
  • Responding to a hazardous materials incident
  • High-risk roadside activity such as emergency traffic control or vehicle pursuit
• A licensed medical professional confirms a direct causal relationship between the duty activity and the fatal medical event.

Absent these conditions, stress-related deaths are not eligible.

Deaths caused by disease may qualify if medical review determines the disease was contracted as a direct result of exposure during official inspection or enforcement duties, including:

• Hazardous materials exposure
• Airborne or bloodborne pathogens
• Infectious agents
• Dangerous environmental conditions encountered in the line of duty

A direct duty-related causal connection must be supported by official documentation and medical evidence.

Special consideration may be granted by the CVSA Inspector Memorial Program for deaths linked to major national or disaster response incidents when supported by established federal or widely accepted scientific criteria.

A death shall not be considered a line-of-duty death for memorial purposes unless it is determined to be the direct and proximate result of official duties.

The following are excluded unless documented evidence establishes a qualifying duty-related causal connection:

1. Natural Causes

Deaths resulting solely from natural causes without a qualifying duty-related stressor and documented medical causation.

1. Alcohol or Controlled Substance Abuse

Deaths resulting from:

• Voluntary intoxication
• Overdose
• Long-term substance abuse

1. Criminal Acts and Intentional Misconduct

• Serious criminal acts by the inspector
• Intentional misconduct

1. Gross Negligence

Deaths occurring while performing duties in a grossly negligent or reckless manner that exceeds reasonable enforcement standards, as determined through official investigation or adjudication.

1. Suicide and Self-Harm

Deaths by suicide or as a result of self-harm will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis, including consideration of duty-related factors.

1. Off-Duty or Non-Official Activities

Deaths occurring:

• While off duty
• During personal activities
• While commuting (unless responding to or engaged in official duties)
• While engaged in private employment or non-governmental work

Unless the inspector was formally activated, dispatched, or otherwise officially engaged by an agency in an official duty capacity, including non-CMV-related public safety, law enforcement, regulatory or emergency response functions.

An inspector shall be included if:

• The employing agency affirms that the death occurred in the line of duty within the scope of the inspector’s official duties
• No credible, verifiable information from official or investigative sources contradicts that determination

All reasonable efforts shall be made to verify eligibility, confirm identity, and ensure accurate memorialization, including consultation with the employing agency and surviving family members.

Member agencies shall notify the CVSA Inspector Memorial Program following a death that may qualify.

Members of the Inspector Memorial Program, as assigned by the program chair, shall:

• Review all relevant documentation
• Determine and evaluate eligibility based on this policy and supporting evidence

Final determinations shall be made by the program based on a majority vote of its members.