Posted on 08/06/2009 9:12:10 AM PDT by OldCorps
A Gahanna police officer pleaded guilty this morning to speeding charges after he was ticketed last month for traveling almost 150 miles per hour on a motorcycle.
Gahanna Officer Christopher Thomas, 33, received a speeding ticket eight days after he was caught going 149 mph on I-70 near Buckeye Lake, and then only after the Ohio Highway Patrol made a courtesy call to his department. Trooper Jason E. Highsmith, 35, who was riding his motorcycle near Thomas, received a ticket for going 147 mph four days later.
Licking County Municipal Judge W. David Branstool fined Thomas the maximum $150 and suspended Thomas' driver's license for six months, citing the reckless nature of the crime. Thomas had faced a maximum suspension of three years.
Branstool said he was sure Thomas had seen the consequences of excessive speed first hand in his nine years as a police officer.
"Those experiences are more sobering than anything I can tell you here today," he said.
Before receiving his sentence, Thomas apologized to his family, saying his actions displayed a bad lapse in judgment.
"I know it was an extremely wrong thing to do," he said.
The Ohio Department of Public Safety has requested an investigation into the actions of all three men involved in the June stop, including Trooper Bryan D. Lee, 25, of the Granville post, who wrote the tickets. Footage from Lee's cruiser shows him recognizing Highsmith and turning off the sound halfway through the official recording.
Highsmith pleaded not guilty last month. He has a trial pending.
Brian Hoyt, Gahanna spokesman, said the guilty plea does not automatically trigger any action from the city, but will be factored into an ongoing internal investigation into possible disciplinary proceedings. He said he was unsure what the driving suspension would mean to the officer's work duties, adding that Thomas is still on injury leave.
Thomas has been on paid leave since a December on-the-job accident.
The Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensations is investigating whether Thomas' injuries were bad enough to justify a half-year of medical benefits. Spokeswoman Michelle Gatchel said today that she could not comment on the status of the investigation.
Gahanna = Jewish hell
I was 20 mph over the limit in FL and my fine was $234. I guess there was a police ball coming up or something at the time.
I have no comment, except to point out that terrific, unfortunate name.
He got the maximum. Should they make a new maximum just for him? I didn’t know the roads there were that good!
How convenient. Amazing how things just "happen" at exactly the right time, isn't it?
And ticketed on the spot, if not arrested, instead of ...
received a speeding ticket eight days after he was caught ...
“If anyone else did this, they would be in jail for a felony.”
A friend of mine got a ticket in Ohio for going 142mph in a car. It was about a $275 fine and some points.
He’s having the ticket framed.
Good Lord...The tax payers are paying this guys salary so he can sit at home with a phony injury, as this guy goes for 150 mile per hour thrill rides on his motorcycle..
The tax payers get screwed again by government.
Poor judge. Imagine if his daughter marries a Mennonite with the common last name of Harder.
I'm wondering if the on the job accident was a traffic accident. I knew one cop that got "requested to resign" after having 14 on the job vehicle accidents in an eight year career.
I have no comment, except to point out that terrific, unfortunate name.
For those not from these parts...
... It was named such because the area became known in the 1700s for the numerous salt licks. The animals gathered to the salt licks and it was good hunting in those parts.
Thomas:
"Hey guys, the stupid tax payers have been paying me to sit at home and play with my tax paid super bike, and go on 150 mph thrill rides...These government jobs are freaking great."
I was commenting not so much about the “Licking,” but about the “Branstool.”
Fire this a-hole. Where there's smoke, there's fire. If he hasn't done this or worse before, he certainly will if he gets away with it this time. Zero tolerance is their mantra, so live by the sword, die by the sword.
I believe the post referred to the Branstool portion that makes the county name all the more interesting
I know a Columbus PD Officer who was stopped by the Ohio State Patrol a few times in the mid to late ‘80s for going 120+ mph on U.S. 23 south to Columbus from Delaware in his Corvette. He was chewed out and let go each time.
LOL! I guess that I hear his name in the local news so often that it doesn't register as odd any longer.
From what I’ve seen of Ohio, the description seems apt.
That's nothing.
I know a US Senator that got drunk and drove off a bridge and left a passenger to drown in his car.
How about an "Obstruction of Justice" charge for starters...
About an hour south of there is Hocking Hills. That place will make you think you are in heaven.
The one that ticketed me sure didn't. Bull-dike driving an unmarked Dodge Charger I'd guess she outweighed me...and I'm 238 lbs.
The cops have a death wish. Who, in their right mind, would drive a motorcycle so fast? Just plain nuts.
“If anyone else did this, they would be in jail for a felony.”
A friend of mine got a ticket in Ohio for going 142mph in a car. It was about a $275 fine and some points.
He’s having the ticket framed.
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http://www.32hours7minutes.com/32-hours-7-minutes-official-trailer
I think either one is remarkable enough by itself, but they are particularly disturbing when juxtaposed.
Wait til you go to renew you drivers license and see the new costs.
They aren’t raising your taxes here, just user fees.
I believe that all licenses for boats, cars, trailers, trucks and a whole lot more are going up 36% EACH of the next three years. I heard that this is how our corrupt politicians decided to make up the difference in taxes when they increased the Homestead Exemption by $25,000.
They let us vote on the HE, but wouldn’t say at the time how they’d make up the difference. Pretty slick. Instead of getting the taxes from Homeowners, they’re now soaking everyone who puts a tag on ANYTHING. Thanks Charlie Crist!!
3 for 3 dirty cops.
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