California police conducting a late-night DUI stop ended up pulling over a car with no driver after an autonomous Waymo taxi performed an illegal U-turn right in front of them.
Cops baffled during DUI stop
The San Bruno Police Department reported that the incident took place Friday evening as officers were carrying out a grant-funded operation targeting impaired drivers.
Officers watched as the all-electric robo-taxi turned unlawfully at a light, leading them to initiate a traffic stop.
To their surprise, the vehicle rolled to a halt with an empty driver’s seat.
“That’s right… No driver, no hands, no clue,” the department wrote in a post about the strange stop.
Officers contacted Waymo to alert the company of what they described as a glitch.
“Since there was no human driver, a ticket couldn’t be issued (our citation books don’t have a box for ‘robot’),” the department said.
“Hopefully, the reprogramming will keep it from making any more illegal moves.”
Police noted that legislation is being drafted to allow authorities to issue official notices when autonomous vehicles commit dangerous violations.
“Whether it’s drivers, passengers, or even driverless cars, we’ll continue to do our part to keep San Bruno’s streets safe,” the department commented.
Waymo currently operates in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Austin, and Atlanta, with Miami on the horizon later this year and Washington, DC slated for 2026.
The odd stop in California unfolded as police across the country reported a string of equally unusual DUI-related cases.
Man dies in drunk tank after showing up intoxicated to bail out buddy
Authorities in Mississippi confirmed that a man who had been arrested twice within weeks on alcohol-related offenses died in custody.
Felix Marquez Bartolo was found unresponsive in his cell around 5:30 p.m. last Saturday, according to Magee Police Chief Denis Borges.
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Officials said Bartolo was by himself in the cell and emergency protocols were immediately carried out.
No foul play is suspected, and the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation has taken over the review.
Bartolo had been arrested two days earlier on charges that included DUI, failure to obey traffic control devices, and a seatbelt violation.
Police also said he was driving without a license or proof of insurance at the time he was pulled over.
Just weeks before, Bartolo was taken into custody after allegedly showing up intoxicated at the police station to post bond for a friend arrested on a DUI charge.
Police nab riding mower driver in bizarre DUI stop
In Florida, state troopers made a peculiar stop when reports came in about a man driving a lawn mower erratically down a toll road.
According to Fox 13, the Florida Highway Patrol located 38-year-old Christopher Spain riding the mower on Suncoast Parkway, while attempting to travel between counties.
When troopers approached, they noted signs of impairment that included small pupils, flushed skin, dry mouth, and nasal irritation.
Spain also had a blue straw on him and repeatedly sniffed and cleared his throat during the stop.
He refused sobriety testing and was arrested for DUI before being released on a $500 bond.
California police faced their own bizarre encounter when officers in Cotati stopped a driver who was unable to maintain their lane.
Inside the car, officers said they discovered more than 70 empty beer cans, along with an open container resting in the cupholder.
“While conducting field sobriety tests, it was determined that the driver was more than 3 times the legal limit, ‘.25% blood alcohol content,’” police stated.
The suspect was arrested on DUI charges and for driving with a suspended license related to a prior conviction.
Authorities posted photos of the cans stacked across the hood of the vehicle as a reminder of the dangers of drinking and driving.
Drunk driver leads police on a slow moving chase with flat tires
And in another Florida case, police bodycam video captured a wild pursuit involving a man accused of stealing alcohol and then taunting officers with drinks during a low-speed chase.
Deputies identified the suspect as 39-year-old Richard Christopher Smith of Miami.
He allegedly circled a store parking lot in a minivan before leading officers on a pursuit.
Bodycam footage shows Smith holding a can of vodka spritz out the window and telling deputies, “I was just going to give you a drink, that’s it.”
The Highlands County Sheriff’s Office said Smith attempted to ram two patrol vehicles while driving on flattened tires after spike strips were deployed.
The chase ended near Sebring Airport, where bodycam video shows Smith casually smoking a cigarette and refusing to comply before being tased by officers.
As he was taken into custody, Smith asked deputies, “You guys had fun, though, right?”
The sheriff’s office noted the odd behavior, stating, “Strange things happen all the time when you’re in law enforcement. This one, however, might make the books.”
Smith was booked on numerous charges, including battery on a law enforcement officer, aggravated assault, resisting arrest, DUI, refusal to submit to testing, and petty theft. His bond was set at $120,000.
