PUTNAM COUNTY, Fla. -- Two sheriff's deputies were fired after a patrol car one was driving was badly damaged as he sped over 100 mph to a golf cart noise complaint.
"You have two deputies either racing or competitively driving at 2:30 in the morning, in my opinion it was severe enough that people could have been killed, could have been hurt," said Putnam County Sheriff Jeff Hardy.
He called the speed inexcusable.
"One hundred twenty-four miles an hour. Keep in mind he lost control at 124 miles per hour, left 518 feet of skid marks and crossed four lanes of traffic," he said.
At the request of the sheriff and in response to a citizen complaint, the Putnam County Sheriff's Office launched an investigation into a Dec. 31 crash involving a sheriff's patrol car.
Deputies Terry Krueger and Thomas Burger were responding to a noise complaint involving golf carts at Hunter Road in Hollister, according to a statement from the PCSO.
The officers were eastbound on State Road 20 in separate vehicles. At SR 20 and Twin Lake Grove Drive, Burger spun out of control and crossed a concrete median into the westbound lane of SR 20, the statement said.
The vehicle sustained about $1,000 in damages. An investigation revealed that Burger was traveling 124 mph, and Krueger was traveling at 119 mph. The posted speed limit in the area is 45 mph.
Burger was initially following Krueger in the inside lane, but moved over into the outside lane to pass him and lost control, the statement said.
Traveling at such a high rate of speed to a routine call for service is a gross violation of agency policy, the statement said.
"We are very fortunate that no one was killed or severely injured as a result of these officers' reckless behavior and lack of judgment," said Putnam sheriff Jeff Hardy. "This traffic crash could have been prevented."
Krueger has worked for the PCSO for six years and Burger had been with the agency for less than a year.
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