A judge found Prince George’s County Councilwoman Karen Toles guilty of reckless driving Wednesday, but allowed her to keep her license.
Toles will pay $435 in fines and court costs, and will be on probation. But no points will be added to her license for now, something that would have required her to forfeit her driving privileges.
Toles was pulled over by Prince George’s police in February, after she changed lanes unsafely and reached speeds of up to 105 mph on the Beltway in Maryland, police said. Police cited Toles for unsafe lane changing but only issued a warning for speeding because the officer’s radar gun malfunctioned.
Toles was charged with reckless driving after a police board reviewed video of the incident.
In court Wednesday, police testified that Toles drove at “a high rate of speed,” tailgated and swerved between lanes without using turn signals. Police followed her with their sirens blaring, but Toles kept driving, they said. When she finally pulled over, she told police she didn’t see their lights because she had been applying makeup and didn’t readjust her review mirror.
Toles’ attorney, Rosalyn Pugh, said there wasn’t enough evidence to show Toles had driven recklessly, saying Toles was out of the line of sight of the responding officer for portions of the incident, slowed down as she approached an exit and stopped at a traffic light.
Police testified that when they finally pulled Toles over, they approached the car with guns drawn because they were unsure of who was driving the vehicle. Toles was crying and seemed distraught, two officers said, and declared, “This is why people hate the PG police” as officers approached her.
Judge Megan Johnson sustained an objection from Pugh to that testimony.
Assistant State’s Attorney Sam Danai argued that Toles was “driving with complete reckless disregard.”
Toles faced the loss of up to six points on her license for the reckless driving charge. Neither Toles nor her lawyer would comment on the matter.
