Police officers encountered a peculiar excuse from a man driving at 107 miles per hour in his convertible Corvette. The man, identified as 57-year-old Michael Stanek, attempted to justify his extreme speed when pulled over in Palm Coast, Florida.
A deputy observed Stanek maneuvering through traffic on a 70mph zone of Interstate 95 before stopping him. Body camera footage captures Stanek exiting his vehicle, being handcuffed, and standing by his sports car during a pat-down.
Questioned about his reckless speed, Stanek replied that he was rushing to his barber. Despite being asked for the urgency, he merely apologized. Florida’s ‘super speeder’ law, classifying speeds exceeding 50mph or 100mph over the limit as criminal, led the traffic unit deputy to inform Stanek of his impending night in jail for endangering others by weaving through traffic at high speeds. Stanek faced an arrest for dangerously excessive speeding.
In a separate incident, a court heard about a driver who removed the black box from his car before fatally hitting a schoolgirl. Christopher West, 42, was allegedly speeding in a 30mph zone when he struck 15-year-old Keely Morgan in Cardiff, resulting in her tragic death.
The court learned that West was showcasing his speed to two passengers in his black Vauxhall Astra before the fatal collision at a zebra crossing where Keely was waiting. Despite emergency services’ efforts, she succumbed to multiple blunt force injuries at the scene.
West received a 16-month jail sentence in July after admitting to causing death by careless driving and driving without insurance due to tampering with his vehicle’s black box, rendering his policy void. Additionally, he faced a driving disqualification of two years and eight months. Keely’s family expressed dissatisfaction with the sentence, emphasizing the irreplaceable loss they suffered.
The sentencing prompted emotional reactions, including swearing and shouts of “disgusting” from Keely’s family members in Cardiff Crown Court.
