In a city where the most exciting thing to happen is a dust storm or a new H-E-B opening, Charles Flacy decided to spice things up back in 2019 by treating I-27 like the Autobahn. Police say he was clocked at a casual 119 miles per hour in his Porsche before slamming into a Buick near Industrial Park Boulevard. Because nothing says “West Texas Class” like doing double the speed limit in a car that costs more than a starter home in Tech Terrace.
It only took the Lubbock judicial system—a machine known for its lightning-fast, Ferrari-like efficiency—seven years to finally cross the finish line on this one. After nearly a decade of “deliberation” (or maybe just waiting for the dust to settle), Flacy pleaded guilty to Negligent Homicide this week. He was originally looking at Aggravated Assault, but hey, why let a little thing like “deadly velocity” get in the way of a generous plea deal?
The crash took the life of Zatryx Boggus and left the driver of the Buick, Carolyne Travis, with serious injuries. The “punishment” for this high-speed catastrophe? A staggering 16 months in state jail. To put that in perspective, that’s roughly the same amount of time it takes to get through the drive-thru at the University Avenue Chick-fil-A on a Friday at noon.
By the time Flacy gets out, we might actually have a second loop finished—or at least another five car washes built on 82nd Street. It’s heartening to know that in Lubbock, if you’re going to kill someone with your car, as long as it’s a nice car and you’re willing to wait seven years for the paperwork to clear, you’ll be back home in time to catch the 2027 Texas Tech football season opener.
At least we now know the going rate for a human life on I-27 is approximately 0.13 months per mile per hour. Stay safe out there, Lubbock—or just buy a faster car.
