Swiss court fines speeding millionaire $290,000
If the purpose of speeding tickets is to discourage driving at excessive speed, perhaps the fines should be based on a person's income. That is the logic used in Switzerland, where a court fined a wealthy speeder $290,000. According to the January 7, 2010 article " Swiss court fines speeding millionaire $290,000 ": ST. GALLEN, Switzerland – A Swiss court has slapped a wealthy speeder with a chalet-sized fine — a full $290,000. Judges at the cantonal court in St. Gallen, in eastern Switzerland, based the record-breaking fine on the speeder's estimated wealth of over $20 million. A statement on the court's Web site says the driver — a repeat offender — drove up to 35 miles an hour (57 kilometers an hour) faster than the 50-mile-an-hour (80-kilometer-an-hour) limit. Court clerk Heidi Baumann-Becker said Thursday the unidentified driver can appeal the decision, handed down in November, to the Swiss supreme court. The Blick daily newspaper in Zurich reported the fine...