06/23/2026
"Super Speeders" BEWARE!
DZ has said for years that every new criminal or traffic law should be viewed with caution—not because every proposal is bad, but because new laws have a way of opening Pandora’s box.
Last October, Maryland changed reckless driving. What had traditionally been a serious traffic offense became a jailable criminal offense if a driver was traveling 30 mph or more over the speed limit. The justification was understandable. The intent was public safety.
Now we’re seeing the next step.
Beginning October 1, 2026, certain "super speeders" may be required to install speed-limiting technology in their vehicles (or be offered this tech in lieu of an outright suspension, as part of Maryland’s new “Stop Super Speeders” law. The device can physically prevent a vehicle from exceeding the speed limit by more than a small margin through use of GPS. https://www.wboc.com/news/maryland-law-aims-to-slow-super-speeders-with-help-from-technology/article_198756cf-b181-45d2-8d3a-f706033b1859.html
Whether you support this particular law isn’t really his point.
DZ's point is that legislation rarely stops where it starts.
One year it’s enhanced penalties. The next it’s mandatory modifications to private automobiles. Each change is defended on its own merits. Each seems reasonable in isolation. But viewed together, they illustrate how government authority steadily expands one statute at a time.
"Once the door is opened, it rarely swings back the other way. It usually opens a little wider." - DZ
That’s the real lesson here.
