TAMPA, Fla. -- Tampa Police have arrested two men for street racing on the Gandy Bridge.
- Two men arrested for street racing on Gandy Bridge
- One man had two children in his car at the time
- Police say people use the bridge as a drag strip
Michael Segler, 28, and Michael Lemire, 27, both face unlawful racing on a highway charges.
Police say they stopped the two men late Saturday night and found some very young passengers in Lemire’s car.
“I observed a young child in the back seat behind the driver, and an even smaller young child behind the passenger (seat),” officer Matthew Milana said.
Both children were less than 5 years old. Although police say the kids were in child safety seats at the time, they underline what authorities say is a constant problem with people using Gandy Bridge as a drag strip.
“Vehicles will line up on the St. Pete side of the bridge and race eastbound,” Milana said. “And they'll do the same on the Tampa side of the bridge and race westbound it's an ongoing problem that's been going on for the last couple of years.”
The incident comes less than two weeks after a tragic crash just a couple miles away on Bayshore Boulevard.
Jessica Raubenolt and her toddler Lilia were struck and killed by a teen who was street racing. On Sunday, that same strip of road was taken over by bicyclists pedaling to remember the victims and drive home their concerns over dangerous drivers.
“This really hit close to home,” ride organizer Jeff Abreu said. “We're out here all the time riding bikes. We see a lot of people out here rollerblading, skateboarding, families with strollers and stuff like that. To see this tragedy it really hit me.”
The two drivers in that tragic crash, Cameron Herrin, 18 and a 17-year old driver of the other car are facing vehicular homicide charges.
Lemire is facing an additional two counts of child neglect for having children in his car when he was arrested for racing.