Driver clocked at 115 mph with son’s head out sunroof: Police

LIBERTY TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WKBN) – A driver is facing several traffic offenses after police say they clocked him going 50 miles per hour over the speed limit.

It’s the picture captured on the Liberty Township Police Department’s speed camera that led to a misdemeanor charge being filed against Elijah Tolever, Sr.

“We find value in not just standing on a bridge and clicking tickets but also stopping violators with those wreckless intentions in mind,” said Capt. Ray Buhala.

Police said an officer working the speed enforcement camera Sunday captured Tolever driving 115 miles an hour heading south on State Route 11 with someone hanging out the sunroof.

“We radioed to another officer ahead as we typically do, and he caught up to the car and was able to stop that car,” Buhala said.

Officer: We got a guy using a laser had you 115 with him hanging out the window.
Tolever: No, we was only going 75.
Officer: No, this was way up there. Took me a minute to catch up to you.

Officers later learned the person out the sunroof was Tolever’s 13-year-old son.

Tolever: “We ride motorcycles out in California, so he rides. He just wanted to. I…”

“If there was an accident, God forbid, obviously, he’s not wearing a seat belt. Any type of debris that could have come from another vehicle could have been pretty traumatic for this child,” Buhala said.

Capt. Buhala said the department takes it seriously.

“To date, we have about 165 cars that we have physically stopped on that stretch of Route 11 from the traffic camera,” Buhala said. “We’re gonna continue to work the camera. We’re gonna continue to make those physical stops of people driving without regard in our township.”

According to a police report, Tolever had a California driver’s license that expired in 2020.

Tolever was issued a ticket for traffic offenses including not having a valid driver’s license and speed. He’s scheduled to appear in Girard Municipal Court next week.

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