Staff Reports
A stunned Oklahoma trooper recently brought a potentially deadly scene to an end when he stopped an unconscious driver slowly cruising down the Will Rogers Turnpike. Troopers say the incident happened around 12:20 p.m. on December 13, when multiple callers reported a newer-model Kia driving oddly in the right lane with the driver slumped over.
Lieutenant Brian McSlarrow had to perform a tactical vehicle intervention to safely halt the car after lights and siren failed to wake the man, a move that likely prevented a catastrophic crash. The dash-cam footage released by the Oklahoma Highway Patrol shows the trooper’s quick thinking and calm execution under pressure.
Officials confirmed the car was moving at roughly 40 miles per hour while the driver remained unresponsive, and investigators believe the vehicle’s lane assist kept it centered in the lane while the driver slept. Those cold, modern conveniences are not a substitute for responsible behavior behind the wheel, and this episode proves how fragile safety becomes when people start outsourcing vigilance to technology.
The driver told troopers he had worked nearly 20 hours in a 24-hour period before getting on the road and had engaged the vehicle’s lane-assist feature on the trip home. That admission should spark serious questions about our work culture and the pressures that lead honest men and women to put themselves — and the rest of us — at risk because they feel they have no choice but to keep going.
Law enforcement issued the driver a citation for inattention and called his wife to come take him home, a small measure of accountability for an act that could have ended lives. Make no mistake: this was not a harmless lapse but a callous gamble with public safety — and it’s right that troopers didn’t shrug and let the slow-moving death-trap continue.
When officers like Lt. McSlarrow are willing to step into harm’s way to keep ordinary Americans safe, they deserve public gratitude, not second-guessing. We should reward and back law enforcement and also demand employers stop treating people like replaceable cogs whose exhaustion can be written off as collateral damage.
This story is a wake-up call for every driver who thinks a lane assist or an app absolves them from common-sense responsibility, and for every business that normalizes 20-hour workdays. Patriotism means protecting your family and your neighbors; that starts with getting enough sleep, putting down the phone, driving sober and accountable, and supporting the brave men and women who keep our roads safe.
