Ben is driving down Butterfield road at a casual forty-five miles per hour as he sees two police officers pulling someone over near the stoplight ahead of him. He decides to slow his speed down to thirty-five miles per hour so that there was no way he would get pulled over. Ben has to turn right at the stoplight, so he moves into the right lane as he drives past the officers at a slow speed. As he makes the turn, he sees bright blue and red lights flashing behind him and knows he did something wrong.

Two years ago, Ben Schlegel was pulled over by the Warrenville Police for breaking the Move Over Law, which resulted in a $400 ticket for a clueless teenager. Ben argues that, “Paying that much for breaking a law that I didn’t even know does not seem fair to me.” 

Starting last week, the Wheaton Police have been patrolling Butterfield Road more than ever, and have begun working in pairs in order to enforce the Move Over Law. According to the AAA Driving Laws, The Move Over Law requires drivers approaching stationary emergency vehicles displaying flashing lights, including towing and recovery vehicles, traveling in the same direction, to vacate the lane closest if safe and possible to do so, or slow to a safe speed. 

The Law has been around for many years but the Wheaton Police have just recently started enforcing it around the area. Many people around the Wheaton and Warrenville area are not aware of this rule, so the City of Wheaton decided to launch a “safety campaign” starting last week. The safety campaign consists of packing a two-mile stretch of Butterfield road with four or five officers and pulling people over from 9a.m.-5p.m. 

“Over the weekend, each time I drove down Butterfield, I saw about five cops, each one of them in the midst of pulling someone over,” says high school student Lance Haack. “It seems like the officers are protecting Butterfield like a mother goose protects her eggs during mating season.”

Another student Thomas Gaita, who was pulled over for speeding last week said “I work thirty to thirty-five hours a week, and I never see cops on Butterfield until this past week.” Gaita was pulled over for speeding as he tried to make it through a yellow light by an officer that was patrolling during the safety campaign. Although he believes it is fair that he was pulled over for what he did, Gaita believes the packing of Butterfield seems like an “unfair way to make the government a lot of money”. 

Whether the safety campaign is fair or not, according to the US Department of Transportation, “More than 150 law enforcement officers have been killed since 1997 after being struck by vehicles along America’s highways.  In fact, traffic-related incidents, including vehicle crashes, are one of the leading causes of death for law enforcement officers.” Since Butterfield is technically considered a highway, the actions of the Wheaton Police Officers are completely legal and an effective way to spread awareness about the Law in the efforts to protect officers. 

To the drivers of the Wheaton/Warrenville area, be cautious when driving and always remember to move over when there are flashing lights.