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David Weber, Manitoba Dad Gets Speeding Ticket For Driving Wife In Labour To Hospital

Dad Gets Ticket For Driving Wife In Labour To Hospital

A Manitoba man is fighting a fine and suspension of his licence after he was given a $1,000 speeding ticket while driving his wife to the hospital while she was in labour and needing critical surgery.

David Weber, 32, is appealing the suspension next week but has been telling his story to the media.

Weber and his wife, Genevieve, were rushing to Brandon General Hospital because she was in early labour and needed a C-section due to complications from a previous pregnancy.

David hit the gas reportedly reaching speeds of up to 170 km/h before being stopped by police. "We were thinking, 'Now we'll get escorted!,' " his wife told the Winnipeg Free Press. Instead the officer slapped them with a $1,000 ticket and the couple was delayed precious minutes.

They continued on their way only to be stopped by a second police officer in the next town who stopped them and called an ambulance.

"We told them the severity of the situation. It's not like I'm just a regular labour-and-delivery. I'm high-risk. It's not like I can go to any hospital," she told CTV News.

The couple eventually made it to Brandon General Hospital and their baby was delivered safely.

David, on the other hand, received a letter in the mail days later that told him that his licence was suspended because he had driven 50 km/h over the speed limit. His fine was later reduced by a justice of the peace but the suspension was upheld.

Next week, David will go before a hearing to fight his ticket and suspension.

"What would have happened if something happened to my wife, or my baby?" Weber said to the Winnipeg Free Press. "Who would have been responsible then? It's like there's no compassion anymore."

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