Excessive speed is the most frequent traffic violation in Spain and the main reason for fines. Two out of every three sanctions that are imposed each year in our country are for stepping on the accelerator beyond what is permitted and the financial amount covers a range from 100 to 600 euros, depending on the margin exceeded. In addition, you can lose a maximum of 6 points on your license.
Although the price that has to be paid in the worst case scenario is a big hit for most pockets, nothing is comparable to the penalty that a driver in the United States has received for speeding. A motorist who was driving his vehicle on a highway in the state of Georgia received a fine of 1.48 million dollars (about 1.4 million euros).
The offender, Connor Cato, was ‘hunted’ on September 2 when he was traveling through the city of Savannah at a speed of 90 miles per hour (145 km/h) in an area limited to 55 miles per hour (89 km/h). ). That is, it exceeded the legal limit by 56 km/h.
After being stopped by a police patrol that reported him for speeding, Cato received notification of the penalty a few days later, as expected.
However, the surprise came when he saw the financial amount with which he was fined: 1.48 million dollars (1.4 million euros), undoubtedly what could be considered one of the highest traffic fines in history. , if not the most. A penalty that leaves far behind the 121,000 euros that a driver in Finland had to pay for exceeding the legal speed limit.
Cato thought it was a computer error and called the Savannah City Council to clarify the situation. But what he did not expect was for an official to confirm that the figure was correct and that he had to pay that amount or appear before the judge in December.
The offender’s lawyer, Sneh Patel, was also surprised by the amount of the penalty and said that “it is something only equivalent in cases of drug trafficking, murder or aggravated assault.” Finally, both Connor Cato and his lawyer cleared their doubts when a spokesperson for the Savannah City Council said that in this type of fines the system establishes a base amount of $999,999.99 (approximately one million euros) to force violators to go to court.
In Georgia, drivers who are caught traveling 75 miles per hour (121 km/h) on a two-lane highway or 85 miles per hour (137 km/h) or faster on any highway or highway in the State are subject to a fine Super Speeder. In all these cases, the notification includes the base amount of almost one million dollars, to which other concepts are added until the final amount is determined, which in the case of Cato amounted to 1.48 million dollars.
The judge will determine the final amount of the fine, which, according to the laws of the state of Georgia, will be a maximum of $1,000 (about 950 euros).
