POSTER BOY FOR A COP IN THE WRONG PROFESSION

Chased car down wrong side of freeway at 100mph and previously shot nine rounds at fleeing sandwich thief

Only a nutjob with a total disregard for his own life and that of innocent drivers would pursue a car at any speed down the wrong side of a freeway. And why he was not fired after shooting at a fleeing sandwich thief is a mystery to me.

FHP TROOPER CHASES CAR THE WRONG WAY AT 100MPH
A Florida Highway Patrol trooper has resigned after an internal affairs investigation determined numerous policy violations

PoliceOne.com
June 21, 2012

PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — A Florida Highway Patrol trooper seen on video pursuing a suspect at 100 mph the wrong way has resigned after an internal affairs investigation determined numerous policy violations.

Trooper Tim Nichols violated policy in the chase on I-275 in St. Petersburg and in unholstering his gun outside a classroom in a separate incident, police told Bay News 9.

"[Nichols'] actions as a totality clearly indicate flawed judgment ... by improper use of your weapon and your dangerous driving," FHP Col. David Brierton wrote in a dismissal letter this week.

Newly-released dash cam video shows Nichols pursuing a white car he had clocked speeding at 120 mph in a posted 65 mph zone. He followed the car up an exit ramp and past a warning sign, driving the wrong way for 1/8 mile.

A sergeant radioed for him to stop the chase, but he said he did not hear the instruction and decided on his own to stop at the same time a second call came through.

"It was 4 o’clock in the morning. There was very little, if no, traffic on the roadway,” Nichols said.

Nichols made national headlines two years ago when dash cam video was released showing the trooper shooting nine rounds at a fleeing sandwich thief in a nursing home parking lot, according to the report.

Following the incident, he was was suspended for 40 hours after the shooting for "careless use of a weapon."

Nichols said working in law enforcement was his dream job. He had been a trooper for 10 years.