A speeding ticket led me to Ronald Reagan's hometown and a deeper understanding of America's president

My wife, 4 daughters and I were driving a rented minivan from Chicago to St. Louis for my cousin’s wedding erstwhile I abruptly became alert of a police car down me with flashing lights, signaling maine to propulsion implicit to the enarthrosis of the road. 

A clean-cut, precise young and precise bully constabulary serviceman looking to beryllium successful his aboriginal 20s approached my model and asked maine if I realized I had been driving successful a operation portion wherever the velocity bounds was 45. 

I told him I could curse the motion had conscionable said 65. He acknowledges that the velocity bounds was 65 awhile back, but it had astir precocious been 45. It wasn’t until aboriginal that I figured retired that I was the latest victim of a velocity trap, and I would beryllium charged with driving 20 miles implicit the velocity limit. 

Dennis Quaid starred arsenic America's 40th president successful "Reagan." (Getty Images)

As the serviceman filled retired the ticket, I noticed his hands were shaking. Must beryllium caller connected the job, I figured and, sensing his weakness, I tried to spot if helium wouldn’t fto maine disconnected with a warning. He said helium couldn’t and noted I indispensable look successful tribunal successful a month. 

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"But I’m visiting from California," I pleaded. "There’s nary mode I tin travel backmost successful a month." 

He urged maine to telephone the tribunal and spot if they’d velocity up my tribunal appearance. It was lone then, arsenic helium finished penning the summons that I looked astatine it and noticed that the jurisdiction successful which my "crime" had been committed was Dixon, Illinois, the hometown of Ronald Reagan. 

As I tried to process this information, I was reminded of what my mother, who was conscionable arsenic devout arsenic Reagan’s mother, often said, that determination is simply a Divine Plan, and that thing is random successful a beingness wherever God orders the steps of His children. Which successful my lawsuit meant that I was being led to Dixon, against my will, possibly for a reason. 

President Ronald Reagan lived arsenic a lad successful this elemental white-framed location connected Hennepin Avenue successful Dixon, Illinois, from 1920-1924. It is present a museum. (Getty Images)

But I inactive had details to be to: Following the officer’s suggestion, I pulled implicit and called a clerk astatine Dixon City Hall to explicate my predicament. She agreed I could travel and spot the justice – but not until the adjacent day. So, I announced to the family, we were spending the nighttime successful Dixon, Illinois. 

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We exited the road astatine downtown Dixon and settled into the Holiday Inn. After eating immoderate pizza, we decided to spot the sights. I’ve ne'er been to Dixon and had nary thought this travel was going to instrumentality maine by it, but arsenic agelong arsenic we were there, I decided to marque the astir of it and larn arsenic overmuch astir Reagan arsenic I could. 

We went to a state presumption and asked for directions to 2 places I consciousness I needed to sojourn to amended recognize Ronald Reagan: the Rock River wherever helium saved 77 lives arsenic a lifeguard, and 1 of his puerility homes connected Hennepin Avenue. 

We drove down a dusty way to get to the stream and spent astir an hr looking for the celebrated log that Reagan was said to person carved a notch successful for each beingness helium saved. But of course, determination was thing to beryllium found.  

Statue of Ronald Reagan astatine the precocious president's boyhood location successful Dixon, Illinois. (Fox News/Cortney O'Brien)

After a relaxing day explaining to my kids the value of the Rock River, visiting the borderline of its stony banks, and playing determination arsenic kids are wont to do, we piled into the car. 

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Next stop: the location connected Hennepin Avenue and much insights into Reagan. 

The location was achromatic and small, and I stopped successful the room and successful the upstairs country to deliberation astir what the country looked similar 75 years earlier erstwhile Reagan’s parent Nelle busied herself making a repast portion her lad did his homework. I besides stopped to acquisition immoderate poems which had been written by Nelle – thing fancy oregon adjacent bound, but conscionable a clump of papers which had been stapled together.

After taking immoderate pictures successful beforehand of the location we were disconnected again; backmost to the edifice to get acceptable for my brushwood with the justice the adjacent morning. 

As I passed done the metallic detectors with my woman and 4 young daughters successful tow, I rapidly recovered my public defender who told maine what I needed to do. I could spell to jail, helium said, but astir apt I’d conscionable person to wage a good truthful agelong arsenic I pleaded guilty. 

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When I explained that I had been simply traveling astatine the velocity of the car successful beforehand of maine and that determination were cars down me, helium conscionable smiled and said I should tell it to the judge – and successful a fewer abbreviated minutes I did conscionable that. 

In fact, I besides had video footage changeable connected my cellphone which showed what happened erstwhile I tried to spell astatine the velocity limit after my citation. Not lone were cars honking astatine maine from behind, but 1 operator sped astir my close broadside and showed maine his mediate finger. I had the full happening connected portion to beryllium to the justice that 45 mph was an unreasonable complaint of speed. 

"How bash you plead?" helium asked arsenic I stood earlier him. 

"Your honor, I’d similar to amusement you immoderate footage I took to amusement you what happened erstwhile I drove astatine the velocity that was posted," I said with a hopeful tone. 

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Former President Ronald Reagan and his woman Nancy question portion attending a gala celebrating his 83rd birthday, Feb. 3, 1994, successful Washington.

"Son, I’m not going to ticker your video," helium says. "Now, however bash you plead?" 

I thought astir the nationalist defender’s informing astir the anticipation of jailhouse and my 4 young daughters who needed their dada to enactment a escaped man. I rapidly replied: "Guilty, your Honor," and with that I was connected my mode to the clerk to wage a hefty $500 fine. 

The bully woman astatine the model listened to my communicative and past looked down astatine her clipboard. She noted that I was the 19th lawsuit that day, and without precisely saying it, thing astir her grin near maine with the beardown content that this was however Dixon kept their metropolis services funded. Nineteen radical astatine $500 a head, hey, that would support a batch of services funded, I thought to myself. 

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The information that I fell prey to this velocity trap yet didn’t substance overmuch due to the fact that erstwhile I got backmost to California, my Aunt Jeanne, who had heard astir my predicament, had sent a cheque to screen the ticket. 

And, I had travel to recognize that determination was intent successful what had happened and that my travel to Dixon was portion of what Reagan would telephone the "DP" oregon Divine Plan, for maine to amended recognize a antheral whom I thought I understood. 

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Excerpted from "Making Reagan: A Memoir From The Producer of The Reagan Movie" by Mark Joseph. The Reagan movie is disposable on DVD/Blu-Ray and at Amazon and iTunes.