News

#Video shows drunk driver calling cops on himself while driving wrong way on highway

Table of Contents

Of all the ways to get caught breaking the law, calling 911 on yourself mid-crime is a pretty surefire way to end up behind bars by night’s end.

According to the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office, one Nebraska man did just that while drunkenly driving the wrong way down highway in March. In a video posted to Facebook to usher in Labor Day weekend, the sheriff’s office shared a recording of the 911 call, in which a man tells the operator that someone is driving the wrong way on state Highway 77.

When asked what the car looked like, the caller said that the alleged offender had his brights on and nearly “ran him off the side of the road.”

When the operator asks for details on the direction in which the offending vehicle is traveling, the caller clarifies that he is driving northbound, information that apparently doesn’t prompt him to check if he, himself, is headed the correct way down the road.

Officer jumps away from car: Video shows Colorado trooper jump off bridge to avoid being struck by speeding vehicle

At this point in the video, which appears to be dashcam footage from the police car that ultimately pulled the man over, an on-screen arrow points to an oncoming vehicle in the distance.

“Dude, he almost hit me, so I was like ‘holy s***’,” the caller continues. When the dispatcher asks if authorities can contact the man at a later point about what he saw, he repeats the expletive.

When the dispatcher tells the man deputies are out trying to locate the vehicle, he responds with: “Yeah, that was gnarly, that was, like, a lot.”

‘Turns out it was you’

The video then cuts to the responding officer’s bodycam as he stands beside a pulled over vehicle.

“Do you know why I stopped you?” he asks.

“Yeah, because I was on the wrong side of the road,” the driver replies.

The driver, who has his hood pulled over his face, says that he had missed an exit. The shot then jumps to the back of a police car, where he is now being held. A caption on the screen lets readers know that the man, it turns out, had a blood alcohol content (BAC) two times over the legal limit to drive.

Realizing who he was, an officer asks, “Were you the one that called in?”

“Yup,” the man replies. “Because I thought somebody was on the wrong side of the road.”

“Turns out it was you,” replies the officer.

“Yup, like a dumb***,” the man concedes.

Drunk driver kills newlywed: ‘She killed all of us’: South Carolina woman accused of killing newlywed is denied bond

While law enforcement was able to stop the man before he caused any accident or injury, the post advised that readers avoid drunk driving during the holiday weekend, as additional deputies would be on patrol for Labor Day.

“Impaired driving remains one of the leading causes of traffic injuries and deaths in the United States,” the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office told USA TODAY in an email. “‘Drive sober or get pulled over’ is a nationwide mobilization coordinated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which ran through Labor Day weekend. While we committed additional deputies to traffic enforcement during this campaign, we’re also trying to bring awareness to the dangerous crime of impaired driving through videos like this.”

Authorities are grateful to members of the public who report dangerous or impaired drivers, they said, and anyone who suspects a driver may be under the influence is encouraged to call law enforcement.

“In this case, the caller happened to be both a caller and an impaired driver,” they said.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Nebraska video shows drunk wrong way driver calling cops on himself

If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on Google News too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.