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Videos show lt. gov. caught speeding twice, no tickets issued

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - Lt. Gov. Andre Bauer, who has had some run-ins with South Carolina law enforcement in years past, was stopped at least twice in the past four months for speeding along the state's highways and no tickets were written.

During the most recent stop, the Highway Patrol clocked Bauer driving 101 mph in a 70 mph zone but he wasn't issued a ticket nor a warning. Video and audio recordings, which are made by cameras mounted in patrol cars, of the stops were obtained by The Associated Press through a Freedom of Information Act request.

Bauer, 37, said Tuesday he was driving in a pack of cars on Feb. 25 and did not realize how fast he was going. He said the officer never told him his speed.

"There's no excuse for me driving that fast," he told the AP. "I've got a lead foot, there's no question. I'm embarrassed if I was going that fast."

Bauer said it was almost midnight and he was driving home from a charity event in Rock Hill, although he couldn't say which charity. He said he normally doesn't drive himself to such events but had to that night.

Bauer said he never asked for or expected preferential treatment.

However, the state Public Safety Department, which is over the Highway Patrol, said Bauer made it clear to authorities that he was the lieutenant governor during police radio transmissions before troopers caught up to him.

That night, Bauer pulled over along Interstate 77 in Chester County after troopers observed him driving over 100 mph on a wet highway. In the video of the stop, a trooper stops next to Bauer's state-issued car - similar to an unmarked police car - rolls down his window and asks the lieutenant governor his name.

"Did you not hear me on the radio?" Bauer asks. "I called in."

When the trooper again asks for his name, Bauer identifies himself as "SC Two."

The trooper then says, "You have a good night, sir," and the video ends.

Public Safety Director James Schweitzer said the governor, for example, is known as "SC One" and that troopers assumed "SC Two" was Bauer's code for lieutenant governor.

Bauer said he identified himself as "SC Two" not for preferential treatment but rather to let officers know who he was so they would not be worried about approaching him. Unlike the governor and former lieutenant governors, Bauer said he does not have a security detail.

The two-way police radio "is provided for emergency use, plain and simple," Schweitzer said. "In this particular case, I'm not aware of any emergency he was responding to."

On Dec. 26, Bauer was stopped on Interstate 385 in Laurens County going between 77 and 78 mph. The speed limit in that area is 65 mph, Public Safety spokesman Sid Gaulden said.

Video of the stop shows a trooper approaching Bauer's 2006 gray BMW. After asking for Bauer's license and registration, the trooper says he recognizes the lieutenant governor then says he will issue him a warning.

Laughing, Bauer says, "Just running late, as usual."

Schweitzer refused to say whether either trooper would face any disciplinary action, but he did say the trooper involved in the Chester County stop reported the incident to his superiors.

Schweitzer told Gov. Mark Sanford about the incident last week, said Sanford spokesman Joel Sawyer.

"They both believe very strongly that preferential treatment should never be a factor when enforcing the law," Sawyer said. "The director has communicated that to (the) Highway Patrol very clearly at the governor's request."

In South Carolina, the governor and lieutenant governor run on separate tickets.

"This is not about any one individual," Sawyer said. "It's about making sure that, whether it's a mayor or judge or legislator or constitutional officer, preferential treatment should never enter the realm of law enforcement."

These weren't Bauer's first traffic violations since being elected. He agreed to pay more than $300 in fines for driving too fast and failing to stop for an officer's flashing blue lights or siren in October 2003.

A few months earlier, Bauer was pulled over in Columbia for driving 60 mph in a 35 mph zone and a police officer drew his gun on Bauer after the lieutenant governor got out of his car and approached the officer.

"I've gotten several tickets, so it's not like I've gotten special treatment," Bauer said.

According to Department of Motor Vehicles records obtained by the AP, Bauer has been issued two other speeding tickets, both for driving 10 mph or less over the speed limit, since 1997.

Highway Patrol Col. Russell Roark said anyone driving more than 25 mph over a posted speed limit would be assessed a 6-point violation against their driving record.

Bauer currently has no points on his record. His license was suspended for several days in 1999 for failure to pay a traffic ticket, according to DMV records.

Bauer, known for his nonstop campaigning, said he plans to reduce the number of functions he attends, which puts him on the road at all hours.

The bachelor said all he knows is work. "I have to learn to say 'no,'" he said. "I've put myself in this situation. I have zero life. This is all I do."

Bauer, who was elected lieutenant governor in 2002, said he still plans to run for re-election this year. He has until noon Thursday to file as a candidate for the $46,545-a-year job.

Another Republican, Mike Campbell, has filed for Bauer's seat as well as Democrat Robert Barber.

"At the end of the day, voters will judge him based on his excellent performance in office, not on speeding tickets," said Rod Shealy, a campaign strategist for Bauer.

Neither Campbell nor Barber would comment on the report.

"Andre Bauer has demonstrated once again his unbelievable immaturity and lack of good judgment. His continuing actions endanger the safety of other drivers and pedestrian," said state Democratic Party Chairman Joe Erwin.

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