Alva Review-Courier -

The traffic fines for driving with a suspended license and speeding can be hefty, but court records show a South Carolina man added more charges and court costs when he allegedly chose not to stop for a trooper.

On Saturday, April 2, about 3:21 p.m. Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Randal McCullough was patrolling eastbound on US-64 and checked the speed of a westbound silver Ram pickup at 78 mph in a 65 mph. McCullough turned his vehicle around and initiated his emergency lights to stop the pickup. The pickup turned south onto County Road 470 and quickly accelerated. McCullough turned south and turned on his siren, but the pickup continued southbound.

McCullough got close enough to read the pickup tag. The pickup then pulled to the side of the road and stopped. McCullough called the driver, Pete Gorman, out of the truck and back toward the patrol car before identifying the driver by his South Carolina ID card.

Gorman stated he did not have a driver’s license and that his was suspended. McCullough ran a computer check and confirmed that Gorman’s license was indeed suspended. He also ran a check on the truck, a 2019 Ram 1500 pickup, finding it had not been registered since the registration expired in 2019.

Gorman was placed in handcuffs, advised he was under arrest and transported to the Woods County jail.

Pete Michael Gorman, 29, of North Augusta, South Carolina, has been charged with attempting to elude a police officer, a misdemeanor. This crime is punishable by imprisonment for up to one year or a fine of $100 to $2,000 or both.

Gorman also received two traffic citations: operating a motor vehicle while license is suspended and traveling 78 mph in a 65 mph zone.