whoever
2007-08-03 21:44:38 UTC
This guys gets an A+ for adapting to his disability, but an F for
everything else!
Armless, 1-Legged Driver Gets 5 Years In Prison
Man Lost Limbs At Age Of 13 In Electrical Mishap
POSTED: 1:15 pm EDT August 3, 2007
NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. -- A man with no arms and one leg who would not
stop driving despite a long list of traffic violations was sentenced
to five years in prison on Friday on the latest charges.
Michael Francis Wiley, 40, also was sentenced to 15 years of drug
offender probation. He pleaded no contest in June to a variety of
felony driving and drug charges.
"I'd just like to say I know what I did was wrong," Wiley said in
court on Friday. "I am truly sorry your honor. I am."
Wiley taught himself to drive after losing both arms and a leg in an
electrical mishap when he was 13. He has already spent more than three
years in prison for habitually driving without a license, kicking a
state trooper and other charges.
He once had a valid license, but it has now been suspended several
times since 1985, according to his attorney. He starts the car with
his toes, shifts with his knee and steers with the stump of his left
arm. He turns on the lights with his teeth.
In his most recent brush with the law last May, Wiley sped off in a
Ford Explorer when police approached him at a convenience store,
officials said. Officers pursued but called off the chase after eight
minutes because they did not want to put others in danger, police
said.
"But by the grace of God you could have killed or maimed a lot of
people," Circuit Judge William Webb told him.
Defense attorney John Hooker pleaded for leniency and a minimum
sentence of 2½ years. He cited his client's need for treatment for his
many physical and mental health problems, including anxiety, panic
attacks, depression and a pain disorder related to his amputations.
Prosecutor Mike Halkitis labeled Wiley a "sociopath."
"He cannot follow the rules of society," Halkitis said.
In a recent interview with the Associated Press, Wiley said he is done
driving.
"I'm beat. The white flag is up," he said. "You can only bang your
head against the wall so long before it hurts."
http://www.local6.com/news/13815004/detail.html
everything else!
Armless, 1-Legged Driver Gets 5 Years In Prison
Man Lost Limbs At Age Of 13 In Electrical Mishap
POSTED: 1:15 pm EDT August 3, 2007
NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. -- A man with no arms and one leg who would not
stop driving despite a long list of traffic violations was sentenced
to five years in prison on Friday on the latest charges.
Michael Francis Wiley, 40, also was sentenced to 15 years of drug
offender probation. He pleaded no contest in June to a variety of
felony driving and drug charges.
"I'd just like to say I know what I did was wrong," Wiley said in
court on Friday. "I am truly sorry your honor. I am."
Wiley taught himself to drive after losing both arms and a leg in an
electrical mishap when he was 13. He has already spent more than three
years in prison for habitually driving without a license, kicking a
state trooper and other charges.
He once had a valid license, but it has now been suspended several
times since 1985, according to his attorney. He starts the car with
his toes, shifts with his knee and steers with the stump of his left
arm. He turns on the lights with his teeth.
In his most recent brush with the law last May, Wiley sped off in a
Ford Explorer when police approached him at a convenience store,
officials said. Officers pursued but called off the chase after eight
minutes because they did not want to put others in danger, police
said.
"But by the grace of God you could have killed or maimed a lot of
people," Circuit Judge William Webb told him.
Defense attorney John Hooker pleaded for leniency and a minimum
sentence of 2½ years. He cited his client's need for treatment for his
many physical and mental health problems, including anxiety, panic
attacks, depression and a pain disorder related to his amputations.
Prosecutor Mike Halkitis labeled Wiley a "sociopath."
"He cannot follow the rules of society," Halkitis said.
In a recent interview with the Associated Press, Wiley said he is done
driving.
"I'm beat. The white flag is up," he said. "You can only bang your
head against the wall so long before it hurts."
http://www.local6.com/news/13815004/detail.html