Driver Clocked at 101 mph Claims Animal Scare, Faces New Florida Speeding Law

Gregory Dolcine, 32, was doing nearly double the speed limit across the St. Johns River bridge when Seminole County deputies pulled him over around 1 a.m. on March 18. His explanation: he was "speeding to avoid an animal in the roadway," according to the arrest report.

Deputies had spotted his dark four-door sedan crossing the bridge over the St. Johns River near State Road 46 and West Osceola Road in Geneva, traveling at what they described in the report as an "excessively high rate of speed." When they clocked him, the number came back at 101 mph in a 55-mph zone.

Dolcine's account of an animal forcing him to accelerate through the rural Geneva stretch at that hour was not corroborated in the arrest report. No source has confirmed whether deputies found any evidence of an animal on or near the roadway.

He was arrested on a charge of dangerous, excessive speeding over 100 miles per hour, the threshold that triggers Florida's enhanced speeding offense. The charge reflects a statute targeting drivers who exceed 100 mph, a category that has drawn increased law enforcement attention across Central Florida in recent months. The Seminole County Sheriff's Office processed the arrest and set bond at $500, which Dolcine has since posted.

The Geneva location adds a layer of particular concern. The two-lane bridge over the St. Johns River along State Road 46 is a narrow corridor in one of Seminole County's most rural stretches, where wildlife crossings are not uncommon and oncoming traffic has little room to maneuver at any speed, let alone triple digits at 1 a.m.

Dolcine's case follows a pattern of high-speed arrests drawing public attention across the region. Orange County recently saw Olympic sprinter Sha'Carri Richardson plead not guilty in a separate super speeder case, and a Florida teenager was arrested after a 130 mph motorcycle ride on Interstate 4 ended in a fire.

No court date for Dolcine has been publicly confirmed.