We’ve all been there (I think). Your car breaks down, you panic, and in the heat of the moment, you make a questionable decision. Maybe you ignored your check engine light for six months. Maybe you top up your coolant with water from a gas station bathroom. We get it. Some judgment, but we get it.
What are we No A deputy, mechanic, or sentient person with a driver’s license would never get the thought process of, “You know what? I’d be driving in reverse down a busy Florida highway.”
Yet, here we are.
Last week, William Murphy III, 47, of Palm Coast, became Florida’s most creative commuter when he backed up his silver sedan on State Road 100. This is not a parking lot. Not a quiet residential street. A busy road. with other cars. keep going. As usual.
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office shared body camera footage on Tuesday after receiving multiple calls from witnesses, a move that can only be described as extremely reasonable — given that people tend to reach for their phones when a man backs up on a major thoroughfare. Deputies tracked Murphy to the Panda Express parking lot, where he had apparently completed his reverse journey and then started driving again as if he were returning from a completely ordinary errand.
Why is he driving in reverse?
When asked why he did this, Murphy gave the most Florida explanation in recent legal history: His car had mechanical problems and he “thought the best option” was to take it back to AutoZone.
My shocking point is this: no Best choice.
But here’s the part that really elevated this story from “crazy local news” to American legend: According to deputies, Murphy’s mechanical issues “went away when deputies backed him up.” A car that allegedly can’t move forward? Suddenly there is full range of directional movement. Truly a miracle. This only seems to happen when law enforcement is present.
On body camera, Murphy remained surprisingly calm about the entire situation.
“I don’t think that’s that bad,” he said. “I wasn’t even turning or anything like that, or driving fast or anything like that.”
One deputy – bless them – responded with the patience of someone who actually saw it all: “You were backing up the road.”
That, my friends, is the entire trial.
A true Floridian: This is not the first incident
As it turns out, Murphy was having more than just a mechanically rough day. Deputies arrested him on a charge of habitually driving while license suspended or revoked — a charge that was filed with the habitual qualifier because it was reportedly his tenth such conviction. The man has been caught driving without a license more times than most people have had their engine oil changed.
He was transported to the Sheriff’s Perry Hall Inmate Detention Facility and later released on $1,000 bail, presumably to reflect on his driving decisions and navigation philosophy.
Now, we’re not here to stack. This man had a problem with his car and he had a solution in mind. This solution happened to scare motorists, confuse law enforcement, and lead to arrests. For those car enthusiasts who would never dream of handling their precious vehicle in this way, relax. Your differential is fine. Not every mechanical crisis requires an orbital reverse maneuver by civilian traffic to end.
But if there’s a lesson here, it’s this simple: If your car breaks down, call a tow truck. Or a friend. Or really, anyone but you at that moment.
AutoZone will still be there when you follow the right directions.
