Play stupid games, win stupid (and inflammable) prizes.
According to KLRT-TV in Little Rock, Arkansas, a man who was tasered by the Arkansas State Police burst into flames after his backpack — which contained a gallon of gas — caught fire.
Christopher Gaylor, 38, is still in the hospital but is expected to be OK, according to the Tuesday report.
The incident occurred on Oct. 13 after state troopers tried pulling over Gaylor on his motorcycle; the vehicle had no license plate, KLRT reported.
Quelle surprise, he didn’t pull over to the side of the road, according to police.
“Authorities say Gaylor refused to stop and traveled at speeds up to 100 mph. Authorities say he ignored multiple traffic stop signs and traffic lights,” KLRT reported.
“He encountered another state trooper while making his way toward Interstate 30.”
The chase worked its way into North Little Rock, where Gaylor hopped off his cycle and started running.
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“One trooper tried using their taser to apprehend him, and that’s when Gaylor’s backpack burst into flames,” KLRT reported.
“Authorities say he had a gallon of gasoline in his backpack that caused the fire.”
Video shows the dramatic moment when Gaylor’s backpack caught fire, as well as some of the chase:
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After Gaylor recovers from his injuries in the hospital, he faces a litany of charges: felony fleeing, failure to register a vehicle, no liability insurance, driving with a suspended license, and reckless driving, according to the report.
The troopers involved, meanwhile, will face no disciplinary action — nor should they.
Look, the situations where one might conceivably celebrate someone else being set aflame are few and far between, and this isn’t one of them. One feels for Gaylor, especially since this didn’t need to happen like this.
However, the onus for making it happen was entirely on Gaylor.
It’s not just because he allegedly led police on a dangerous chase on the highway because he had no license plate, license or insurance.
Unwilling to accept his fate, Gaylor decided that, when he pulled over, he was going to make a run for it, according to authorities. His confrontation with police ended with them apparently seeing no other alternative but the stun gun.
And all of this time, he had a gallon of gasoline in his backpack.
I know it’s not the brightest sort who allegedly leads police on a 100 mph chase and then flees on foot. Surely, however, even that sort might remember he has an extremely flammable fluid in his backpack and that stun guns tend to react poorly with combustibles.
Gaylor is lucky to have his life — as are the troopers who apprehended him.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
