Aimee Michael, sentenced to 50 years on Thursday for causing, then fleeing, a 2009 Easter Sunday crash that killed five people, had a history of speeding, according to records obtained by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Michael, 24, was raised in Philadelphia and attended the University of Pittsburgh. According to Pennsylvania records, the 24-year-old liked to drive fast -- too fast -- before she moved here after graduating with a degree in psychology in 2008.
On Feb. 2, 2007, she was stopped in Blair County, about 100 miles east of Pittsburgh, going 75 mph in a 65 mph zone.
Just a week later, on Feb. 9, 2007, she was pulled over for doing 89 in a 65 zone in Columbia County, Pa.
Michael paid fines of $137 and $80, respectively, for the traffic violations, and, according to Pennsylvania Department of Transportation regulations, had seven points put on her driving record.
Under Pennsylvania Department of Transportation rules, any driver who gains more than six points on his or her driver’s license must take a safe driving class within 30 days or risk having the license suspended.
It’s unclear if Michael attended the class, but on March 31, 2007, she was cited again for speeding, this time traveling 86 mph in a 65 zone.
The citation cost her $173 and four more points against her license, which could have led to a 15-day suspension.
Citing privacy laws, officials in Pennsylvania declined to confirm whether Michael had taken the mandatory class or had any license suspension.
She had other infractions as well.
She had been stopped on Sept. 4, 2006, for traveling 75 mph in a 65 mph zone in Bedford County, Pa.
And she was pulled over on April 17, 2008, by University of Pittsburgh police for failing to obey a stop sign.
After that, Michael moved to Atlanta, living with her parents. Her father is a military man; her mother a school teacher.
And while she was here, she maintained a clean driving record. That is, until that day on April 12, 2009.
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