FHP still seeing triple-digit speeders despite ‘Super Speeders’ law

MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. (WWSB) - The new ‘Super Speeder’ law went into effect on July 1.

The law stiffens penalties for excessive speeding. The law says:

A person commits dangerous excessive speeding if he or she operates a motor vehicle:

• In excess of the speed limit by 50 mph or more.
• At 100 mph or more in a manner that threatens the safety of other persons or property or interferes with the operation of any vehicle.

On a first conviction, a person can be imprisonment for up to 30 days or assessed a fine of $500, or both.

Upon a second or subsequent conviction, a super speeder could face up to 90 days in jail, a fine of $1,000, or both.

A person convicted of a second or subsequent violation within 5 years of a prior conviction “shall have his or her driving privilege revoked for at least 180 days but no more than 1 year.”

Florida Highway Patrol Senior Trooper Kenn Watson said last month, troopers caught a driver speeding through Sarasota and Manatee counties going 122 mph. They were arrested and their car was impounded.

But even as recent as Wednesday morning, Trooper Kenn Watson said troopers arrested a man driving 105 miles per hour near Charlotte County.

Watson said that man did not have a license and was not a citizen.

“There are too many people on our roadways for people to be driving triple digits, it’s simply unacceptable,” said Watson.

Off of the highways, FHP is also paying attention to school zones and neighboring communities, with school beginning on Monday.

“Kids don’t always make the best decisions, so at the stop signs and intersections, please watch out for the little ones,” said Watson.

FHP will assist local law enforcement, like the Sarasota Police Department, in monitoring school zones.

“You’re going to see a lot of red and blue lights the first week of school and that has to do with reminding parents and drivers that school has started,” said Jason Frank, a Traffic Homicide Investigator at the Sarasota Police Department.

“A lot of our schools have mostly walkers and bike riders, so in the mornings, in the afternoons, we see a lot of kids in those specific areas,” said Frank.

The school zone speed cameras will go back on as of Monday and Frank reminds drivers that using your cell phone while in an active school zone is against the law.