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Prom Night Limo Safety Save Email Print
Posted: 10:24 PM May 9, 2008
Last Updated: 10:36 PM May 9, 2008
Reporter: Max Seigle

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"You just think you're going to have the best night of your life and it wasn't," Kaitlin Marcum said. It wasn't for these Freeport students because their limo driver was arrested and charged with reckless driving. And instead of dancing the night away, these teens spent much of their prom night fielding questions from police. "Everybody was pretty shaken up," Marcum said. It's a prom disaster that limo companies, like Classic Limousine in Machesney Park, work hard to avoid. This weekend, they're shuttling students to and from at least four proms in the Stateline. And those behind the wheel are heavily scrutinized. "We do a complete M-V-R check on them. Make sure they have no tickets, no D-U-I's. If they have D-U-I, they're automatically eliminated," Owner Randy Samples said. Along with background checks, Samples does what he calls an "extensive" interview process to see if driver candidates fit well with him and his business. There's also written test. "70 or 80 questions, What would do in this predicament? What would do in this one?" Samples said. Classic Limousine also requires test drives before employees get behind the wheel solo. They take four or five rides with experienced drivers as part of the hiring process. "The drivers come back and say yes he's good for us, no he's not," Samples said. All of that is taken into account so students and their parents can be at ease on prom night. And make the night sparkle like the ride inside. As far a driver's authority over prom-goers on the roads, Samples says they're free to ask students to quiet down if they get rowdy. If things get more hectic, there have radios in the limos to call Samples. And he'll make the call if they should turn around. As for the Freeport case, 23 News spoke with the driver Friday night. He's actually one of the owners of Amazing Transportation of Crystal Lake. He's denying the reckless driving claims. He admits he hit his brakes hard at one point during the drive to prom because some of the students in the back were allegedly screaming in his ear and calling him names. The students say that didn't happen.

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