- Police nabbed a Corvette driver doing 148 mph in traffic in California.
- State law there limits arrestability even in cases of extreme speed like this.
- Likely the driver is facing years of highly increased insurance rates if not more.
There are safe places to test a car’s upper limits, and there are dumb places. One Corvette driver in California chose the latter recently and just so happened to do so in front of the Highway Patrol. An officer clocked him at almost 150 mph (241 km/h), and the interaction became more than just a ticket.
It’s now a lesson to everyone watching video of the stop. Even if one escapes arrest, the consequences of such a stop can be long-lasting.
More: Florida Sheriff Preaching Zero Speed Tolerance Caught Speeding In Supercar
The Solano division of the CHP posted the video to its social media channels. In it, we see a CHP dashcam where the officer appears to be parked on the left shoulder. Ignoring the potential safety danger of that in and of itself, moments later, we see the C5 Corvette in question blitz by the officer at a pace that is clearly much faster than surrounding traffic. According to CHP, the car was going 148 mph (238 km/h).
The officer caught up in the left lane (going who knows how fast) and pulled the Corvette over. According to authorities, “The driver is now facing two points on his driver license, steep court fines, a likely driver license suspension through the DMV, and increased insurance rates as a result of those points.”
Let’s take a moment to break things down a little because every state does things differently. For example, in Florida, this driver would’ve immediately gone to jail.
In California, speed alone, even extreme speeding like in this case, is very rarely an arrestable offense. Reckless driving opens the door to arrest but it requires some action beyond speeding itself. The officer would need to see the Corvette weaving in and out of traffic, tailgating, or other things to justify that charge. As such, they almost certainly drove away after this stop. As the CHP points out, it’s not as if they’re getting off Scot-free, though.
Two points on a license might not sound like much but that could have huge effects on a driver if they hold a CDL. Even if they don’t, California now has a relatively new law that allows the DMV to suspend a driver’s license before the case even goes to court.
On top of that, this person’s insurance rates are likely about to climb sky high regardless of whether or not the DMV suspends their license. As the CHP pointed out in its post, these are all great reasons to “save the high speeds for the track.”
