[quote]With his wife paralyzed by the pain of contractions that jeopardized her pregnancy, David Weber hit the gas pedal to save his unborn baby's life.
Now, the 32-year-old father is sitting in his farmhouse in rural Manitoba, frustrated by a system that has left him caring for a young family with a whopping speeding ticket and a suspended licence.
Weber plans to appeal the licence suspension at a hearing with Manitoba Public Insurance next week -- but first, he hopes to be publicly heard.
On March 21, Weber and his wife Genevieve, 29, were on their way back to their spacious hobby farm outside Portage la Prairie, after a day spent shopping in Winnipeg. Genevieve was 38 weeks pregnant with the couple's second child; due to a complication while giving birth to daughter Madison, now 3, doctors warned that natural labour could put future babies at risk.
So when contractions struck and blood started to flow inside their vehicle on Highway 1 near Oakville, the Webers panicked.
Their hope: make it to Brandon General Hospital, where Genevieve's doctors and medical records were waiting. She was scheduled to have a Caesarean section there only five days later, still a week before her due date; but at that moment, with Genevieve's contractions already coming fewer than five minutes apart, fear set in.
Although he doesn't usually speed, he said, David hit the gas on the couple's silver Honda Civic, surging as fast as 170 kilometres an hour on clear and lightly trafficked roads. When the couple saw an RCMP cruiser's lights flash just outside Portage la Prairie, they were "really relieved," Genevieve said. "We were thinking, 'Now we'll get escorted!' "
Indeed, the officer encouraged them to go to Portage General Hospital to seek surgery or call an ambulance to take them to Brandon. But worried about transfer time, and the fact that they had been advised that Portage General Hospital does not normally perform routine C-sections, the stressed couple begged to push forward to Brandon.
Instead of an escort, they came away from the 15-minute traffic stop with a $1,000 speeding ticket -- and a warning. "He said, 'If you go to Brandon, I don't want to see you guys speeding,'" David said. "I was half-crying... I said, 'We don't have time for a lecture.' (I was) trying to save my wife and baby's life."
Back on the road, with Genevieve in increasing pain, Weber hit the gas again. Thirty minutes later, he was stopped by a Carberry RCMP officer who had been alerted that the Webers may be speeding towards Brandon. The Carberry officer issued David another speeding ticket, warned him again of the dangers of speeding and called an ambulance.
The Webers estimate they waited about 15 minutes for the ambulance to arrive.
"I couldn't believe this was happening," Genevieve recalled. "I want my baby to be safe, and they're not taking me seriously. They're not protecting us. There's no common sense left, or something."
The good news -- the Webers' baby, Anabela, was born healthy in Brandon after an emergency C-section.
Soon after the incident, Weber -- who does not have a history of dangerous driving, he said -- went before a justice of the peace to ask for compassion, showing a letter from their doctor that, by the time Genevieve made it into the operating room, her uterus was "very close to rupture" and Anabela was in distress.
"She knew she had to come to the hospital as soon as possible due to concerns... with dire consequences for the baby as well as possibly mother," Dr. J.B. Helms stated. "In light of these circumstances, I think (Genevieve) and her husband did the right thing... It was thus unavoidable for them to drive faster than normal."
Despite the doctor's support, the justice of the peace declined to drop Weber's ticket or replace it with a reprimand -- though he did lower the price of the ticket to $400.
The Webers might have let the story end there, but for what happened next: in June, David Weber was called before an MPI hearing officer to explain the speeding. On July 8, the hearing officer's verdict came down: as a result of the ticket, Weber's licence will be suspended for five months.
To get it back he'll have to take a safe-driving course and could pay as much as $1,000 to renew his licence for years to come.
For a working father in rural Manitoba, with a newborn baby and a three-year-old at home, it's a nerve-wracking loss. Even applying for a special permit to get to work at his sales job in Portage la Prairie could take months, he said.
Though officials from MPI and RCMP would not comment on the specifics of Weber's case, citing privacy concerns, both noted that protocols are designed to keep Manitoba's roads safe -- while allowing for occasional crises. Reports indicate that many of those procedures were followed in the Webers' case.
"In any case of medical emergency, we would request an ambulance so they could get emergency medical assistance or escort them to hospital. Both would be offered," said RCMP spokesman Const. Miles Hiebert. "We would take them to the nearest hospital."
MPI spokesman Brian Smiley explained that a ticket for speeding at least 50 km/h above the posted limit is grounds for an automatic hearing on licence suspension. While medical emergencies would certainly be considered in the decision, Smiley said, an overarching factor is whether the ticket was upheld by a magistrate -- as Weber's was.
"In a situation where the person provides the medical information, or the ticket can be overturned at court level, it does give a little more flexibility for the hearing officer," Smiley said.
On hearing about the case, Len Eastoe, a former police officer who runs Traffic Ticket Experts, said the situation might have been better handled by RCMP officers driving Genevieve to hospital in their cruisers. "An emergency situation arrives, and you don't wait for the ambulance," Eastoe said. "You're driving an emergency vehicle... you get them to hospital."
Barring that, the exceptional circumstances around Weber's speeding ticket could well have merited more leniency from a justice of the peace, Eastoe said -- either dropping the ticket or a reprimand, which does not result in licence demerits.
"In a circumstance like this, (a discharge or reprimand) is certainly something the justice of the peace should be considering," Eastoe said. "Especially in a life-or-death situation. How do you not allow for something like that?"
Back home outside Portage la Prairie, Weber now hopes that one of the authorities involved in his case will consider giving him a little leeway, and help him get his licence back.
Going to the media was a last resort, he said -- and a chance to warn others that even in the stress of a medical emergency, repercussions for speeding can be serious.
"What would have happened if something happened to my wife, or my baby?" Weber said. "Who would have been responsible then? It's like there's no compassion anymore.[/quote]
[url=http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/he-saves-babys-life-gets-huge-ticket-125679938.html]Source[/url]
Justice is blind...
I mean, I feel for him and understand everything but he should've gone to the suggested hospital.
Wow this is sort've sickening
Isn't there exemptions for emergencies and shit?
Yeah, I thought there was but do they count pregnant women as emergencies only?
[QUOTE=Nerts;31373610]Isn't there exemptions for emergencies and shit?[/QUOTE]
Only in emergency vehicles, that's how they get right of way.
My dad once took a friend of mine to the hospital. Luckily in Norway, there's a speeding exception if it's a medical emergency (Hand in signed paper by the doctor and have him confirm it and you're scott free)
[QUOTE=mac338;31373750]My dad once took a friend of mine to the hospital. Luckily in Norway, there's a speeding exception if it's a medical emergency (Hand in signed paper by the doctor and have him confirm it and you're scott free)[/QUOTE]
Norway sounds very very cool right about now.
Wow, holy shit. This happened in Manitoba. But yeah, we really do have stupid shit like this. I hate this province.
In some countries I think there's this law that anyone can drive a car in case of an absolute emergency, even a 10 year old kid.
[QUOTE=TheFilmSlacker;31373929]this is fucking sickening.[/QUOTE]
Sickening in the way that I actually see a cop writing a ticket very slowly as his wife has the kid in the back ground.
Honestly, if I was a cop, I'd put them in my vehicle and FLY to the hospital to help them.
[QUOTE=J!NX;31373982]Sickening in the way that I actually see a cop writing a ticket very slowly as his wife has the kid in the back ground.
Honestly, if I was a cop, I'd put them in my vehicle and FLY to the hospital to help them.[/QUOTE]
Police cars are not a Taxi. Is it wrong to ticket someone for that, morally, yes. Did he break the law in all fairness, yes.
To be perfectly honest, he should of called for an ambulance to begin with. There are a lot of stories about people speeding to hospitals only to get a ticket and ambulance called anyway. What disgusts me is that they are making him jump through hoop after hoop for things to return to normal.
[QUOTE=areolop;31374094]Police cars are not a Taxi. Is it wrong to ticket someone for that, morally, yes. Did he break the law in all fairness, yes.[/QUOTE]
just because your a cop doesn't mean you have to uphold the law blindly you know. I would do it because its the safest, fastest way for them to do so, if there is no other clear alternative.
[QUOTE=Bahumhat;31374463]To be perfectly honest, he should of called for an ambulance to begin with. There are a lot of stories about people speeding to hospitals only to get a ticket and ambulance called anyway. What disgusts me is that they are making him jump through hoop after hoop for things to return to normal.[/QUOTE]
Maybe so, I just assume he had a reason, maybe the ambulance there are slow, I don't know.
So let me get this straight: It's an emergency, it could be life or death, but instead of going to the nearest hospital they go to a farther one? And they do so at over 100mph, putting other motorists at risk in the process?
It's one thing to speed to the nearest hospital because there's an emergency (as the cop suggested), but if you can afford to waste time and be picky about where you're going, you can take the time to not be a hazard to innocent bystanders.
[QUOTE=catbarf;31374595]So let me get this straight: It's an emergency, it could be life or death, but instead of going to the nearest hospital they go to a farther one? And they do so at over 100mph, putting other motorists at risk in the process?
It's one thing to speed to the nearest hospital because there's an emergency (as the cop suggested), but if you can afford to waste time and be picky about where you're going, you can take the time to not be a hazard to innocent bystanders.[/QUOTE]
They went to the father hospital because the closer one does not perform routine c-sections.
[quote]But worried about transfer time, and the fact that they had been advised that Portage General Hospital [b]does not normally perform routine C-sections,[/b] the stressed couple begged to push forward to Brandon.[/quote]
He should've kept going so that way it'd be sort of an escort just with the cars in reverse order.
[QUOTE=J!NX;31374475]just because your a cop doesn't mean you have to uphold the law blindly you know. I would do it because its the safest, fastest way for them to do so, if there is no other clear alternative.[/QUOTE]
Actually, yes you do.
It is your job to uphold the law even if you don't agree with it.
Calling an ambulance might have been smarter.
But the cop calling ahead and warning his buddy to pull them over (again) and ticket them (again) knowing the situation was a serious dick move.
[QUOTE=Swilly;31375087]Actually, yes you do.
It is your job to uphold the law even if you don't agree with it.[/QUOTE]
Theres some laws that shouldn't be upheld, you know.
[QUOTE=J!NX;31375240]Theres some laws that shouldn't be upheld, you know.[/QUOTE]
Its not the officers call.
[QUOTE=J!NX;31375240]Theres some laws that shouldn't be upheld, you know.[/QUOTE]
Not the policeman's job. The courts interpret, the policeman enforces the law exactly as written. If you have a problem with a law or ruling, you go to court. Giving policemen the power to selectively enforce laws would be disastrous.
When my brother was about to be born my dad just sped up until the police stopped him, once he explained the situation they turned on the sirens and escorted us to the hospital :v:
wow what a dumbass the cop i mean
It sounds insane, yes, but it does make sense. Despite the fact that it is a medical emergency, and he is scared, by going at such high speeds he is absolutely endangering everyone else on the road. Emergency vehicles are driven by people who know how to handle a vehicle at that sort of speed. In the article, he says, "What if the baby had died?" To which you have to consider, "What if he had crashed?" If they had hit another vehicle at that speed, not only would he, his wife, and his baby have died, but the occupants of the other vehicle would likely have met the same fate. It sounds discompassionate on the surface, but it does make sense.
The cops are still at fault, don't get me wrong. They should have escorted him to the hospital. But that doesn't mean what they did was completely wrong and what the father did was completely right.
[QUOTE=Swilly;31373593]Justice is blind...
I mean, I feel for him and understand everything but he should've gone to the suggested hospital.[/QUOTE]
If this had anything at all to do with justice, you'd have a point.
[QUOTE=Morcam;31375686]It sounds insane, yes, but it does make sense. Despite the fact that it is a medical emergency, and he is scared, by going at such high speeds he is absolutely endangering everyone else on the road. Emergency vehicles are driven by people who know how to handle a vehicle at that sort of speed. In the article, he says, "What if the baby had died?" To which you have to consider, "What if he had crashed?" If they had hit another vehicle at that speed, not only would he, his wife, and his baby have died, but the occupants of the other vehicle would likely have met the same fate. It sounds discompassionate on the surface, but it does make sense.
The cops are still at fault, don't get me wrong. They should have escorted him to the hospital. But that doesn't mean what they did was completely wrong and what the father did was completely right.[/QUOTE]
His wife and baby were in huge danger and he was speeding down clear roads. Perfectly acceptable. It's pretty impossible to lose control of a car going in a straight line so there was little danger.
[QUOTE=Karl_Nietcault;31374871]They went to the father hospital because the closer one does not perform routine c-sections.[/QUOTE]
An emergency c-section is not a routine c-section
That being said, what he did shouldn't be illegal especially on rural highways in southern manitoba where you can easily speed safely
The fact that people are supporting a man who endangered the life of his own child, his wife, and possibly dozen of other motorists is sickening, even if the officers could have been nicer.
[QUOTE=AngryChairR;31376012]It's pretty impossible to lose control of a car going in a straight line so there was little danger.[/QUOTE]
Little danger in going 100mph on back roads (not smoothly-paved highways)? At a speed where looking back for just two seconds to check on the wife corresponds to three hundred feet of movement? Where people could be coming off of side roads and merging? Over potholes and bumps that can cause you to lose control at 50, let alone 100? Little danger? Really?
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.
