One might think that a person going that fast, endangering his own life and the lives of others, would not be driving for a while. If one thought that, one might well be wrong.

Under current law, that driver, conceivably, could be caught driving that fast three more times before accumulating enough points to have his driver's license revoked. The current fine for excessive speed is $200, and three points toward revocation, which can occur at 12 points.

A bill passed by the Nebraska Legislature and signed into law this week by Gov. Dave Heineman does something about that, raising the fine for exceeding the speed limit by 35 miles per hour or more from $200 to $300 and raising the points from three to four. That takes effect in mid-July.

Under the new law, if not charged with other offenses, the motorcyclist cited above could only do it two more times before suffering a revocation and pay $900 in fines instead of $800 under current law.

While in most cases restraint is admirable in the process of passing laws, in this instance Nebraska's lawmakers might be accused of showing too much restraint. ...

One instance of such recklessness probably warrants some time as a pedestrian. Allowing two or three such episodes clearly amounts to subjecting the rest of us to a maniac. ...

This behavior is simply too dangerous to allow two or three bites at the apple before an offender loses his or her license. It's good to see the penalties getting tougher, but there's clearly a long way to go.

North Platte Telegraph