Local motorists who drive through roads closed by floods won’t pay any more in fines tomorrow than they do now.
An ordinance that would have significantly increased the fine for driving around barricades warning motorists of closed, flooded roads was defeated by the Bartholomew County Commissioners on Monday.
Commissioners chairman Rick Flohr and Larry Kleinhenz voted against the measure on first reading. The third commissioner, Carl Lienhoop, was absent from the meeting.
While the state-imposed fine is $140, it was Bartholomew County Emergency Management director Shannan Hinton who first asked that the fine be increased to $500 for each infraction.
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The ordinance has the support of the sheriff’s department, the county highway department, the Emergency Operations 911 Center and other first-responders, Hinton said.
“I’m not convinced this higher fine will do anything to prevent someone from going into high water,” Kleinhenz said.
In addition, if the county imposed a fine greater than state law dictates, infractions would have to be handled by county attorney Grant Tucker rather than the office of county prosecutor Bill Nash, Kleinhenz said.
Although Nash works for a fixed sum, Tucker can charge hourly rates that could result in legal bills far more expensive than any money received through a higher fine, Kleinhenz said.
In addition, it will likely be those who can least afford a $500 fine who will end up being fined, the long-time commissioner said.
There have been more than 500 calls for water rescues in Bartholomew County over the past five years, Hinton said. In addition, she said road closure signs are frequently ignored — especially those placed on South Gladstone Avenue, State Road 11 and Southern Crossing.
In reaction, the commissioners said they want to find other ways of reducing these infractions that include:
Permanent flip signs on road closed signs that explain the fine.
Gates that would keep roads closed. Currently, those gates are only found at Tinkey Bridge and along County Road 800S.
Following Monday’s vote, Hinton said she will work with the commissioners and local law enforcement to explore options.
