# Girls bikini top gets untied and wrecks car. Acquitted? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 25, 2013, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759 "2013-11-25T16:12:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/21 "2013-11-25T17:51:46Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > My guess is that he had to unbuckle his seat belt (if he had it buckled at all) to lean forward and reach her bikini. That may be why he was the only one killed. That was my guess as well. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/22 "2013-11-25T17:57:19Z")
My wife just asked how the guy **could** untie her bikini top while shes leaning against the car seat? You wouldn’t think her back would be accessible while shes driving. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/23 "2013-11-25T17:59:51Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > My wife just asked how the guy **could** untie her bikini top while shes leaning against the car seat? > > You wouldn’t think her back would be accessible. Halter-style bikini tops have a tie that goes around the neck. I have also seen models with side-ties. Also, not everyone drives leaning back against the car seat. From the thread title, I assumed that the bikini top had somehow got tangled up in the gearshift or something, and I’m kind of disappointed that it was something else. ---
**Author:** ![Myrnalene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@Myrnalene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myrnalene)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/24 "2013-11-25T18:00:36Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > My wife just asked how the guy **could** untie her bikini top while shes leaning against the car seat? > > You wouldn’t think her back would be accessible while shes driving. Maybe she hunches forward while she is driving. Some people do. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/25 "2013-11-25T18:05:28Z")
Maybe she should have worn a shirt while she was driving. Some people do. ---
**Author:** ![Grumman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/43a26b/32.png) [@Grumman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumman)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/26 "2013-11-25T18:15:41Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > Maybe she should have worn a shirt while she was driving. Some people do. Maybe you should quit blaming the victim of sexual harassment for not wearing more concealing clothing. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/27 "2013-11-25T18:20:12Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > Maybe she should have worn a shirt while she was driving. Some people do. Yes, then she would have only had to cope with her jackass passenger opening an umbrella in the car and sticking his feet in her face. Now that I think about it, she probably should have just not allowed her passengers to have feet. Some people don’t. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/28 "2013-11-25T18:26:16Z")
> [@Grumman](#): > > Maybe you should quit blaming the victim of sexual harassment for not wearing more concealing clothing. No, I’m blaming the driver of a motor vehicle for not either having the maturity to realize that maintaining control of said vehicle is an infinitely higher priority than covering up her tits, or dressing in a manner that renders it much less likely that the question will arise. Had he exposed her tits in a less hazardous time and place I’d be all for nailing his hide to the wall; I still would be had he survived the resulting accident. The point is that there’s enough blame to go around, and the douchebag is not going to get any deader no matter what you do to him. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/29 "2013-11-25T18:31:14Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > No, I’m blaming the driver of a motor vehicle for not either having the maturity to realize that maintaining control of said vehicle is an infinitely higher priority than covering up her tits, or dressing in a manner that renders it much less likely that the question will arise. Had he exposed her tits in a less hazardous time and place I’d be all for nailing his hide to the wall; I still would be had he survived the resulting accident. The point is that there’s enough blame to go around, and the douchebag is not going to get any deader no matter what you do to him. This is a really dumb argument. If she’d been wearing a halter top (which, the last I checked, counts as real clothing) he also could have easily untied her top. Also the tops of a lot of evening wear. Also anything that snaps or buttons up the back. You are not really suggesting that people dress up in high-collared pullover shirts in order to avoid the possibility that one of their passengers might try to undress them while they are operating a motor vehicle. You just don’t think that driving while wearing a bikini is appropriate for some reason and are making a connection where none exists. Wearing a bikini while driving is not a high-risk behavior. Driving with asshole passengers, however… there, you might have a case. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/30 "2013-11-25T18:31:53Z")
> [@dracoi](#): > > What’s really interesting about the pictures is that both of the girl’s pictures have her drinking. According to the article, she’s 24, so the pictures are of her performing a legal activity. ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/31 "2013-11-25T18:33:53Z")
> [@dracoi](#): > > What’s really interesting about the pictures is that both of the girl’s pictures have her drinking. Was there any suggestion that she had been drinking prior to this incident? ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/32 "2013-11-25T18:35:41Z")
> [@Malacandra](#): > > No, I’m blaming the driver of a motor vehicle for not either having the maturity to realize that maintaining control of said vehicle is an infinitely higher priority than covering up her tits, or dressing in a manner that renders it much less likely that the question will arise. Had he exposed her tits in a less hazardous time and place I’d be all for nailing his hide to the wall; I still would be had he survived the resulting accident. The point is that there’s enough blame to go around, and the douchebag is not going to get any deader no matter what you do to him. I must admit I’ve never considered the possibility that a passenger may attempt to undress me without permission when deciding what to wear while driving. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/33 "2013-11-25T18:52:57Z")
> [@PaulParkhead](#): > > Was there any suggestion that she had been drinking prior to this incident? I wonder if the Darwin Award Candidate has been. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Fire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e4f/32.png) [@Silver\_Fire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Fire)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/34 "2013-11-25T18:54:54Z")
> [@Falchion](#): > > I’m assuming that she didn’t consider the situation and conclude that the shame of being topless was too great and took her hands off to put her top back on. According to another passenger, that’s exactly what she did. He claims her hands were off the wheel for as long as 20 seconds while she tried to re-tie it. It’s in the linked article. So depends who you believe, I guess. I will say I’ve taken my hands off the wheel “for a split second”, as this driver claims she did, to open a soda or whatever and nothing happened. So my assumption is that the truth is closer to what her passenger stated and she overcorrected her fuck up. Based on nothing, of course. That guy was a total douche though, regardless. ---
**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/35 "2013-11-25T18:58:29Z")
> [@muldoonthief](#): > > According to the article, she’s 24, so the pictures are of her performing a legal activity. It’s not that I think she was under age while drinking, or even that I think she was drinking at the time of the accident. But surely it’s not an accident that the author/editor of the paper chose those two photos. Surely they had access to photos of her doing things other than drinking? ---
**Author:** ![all\_timestamps\_displayed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/958977/32.png) [@all\_timestamps\_displayed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/all_timestamps_displayed)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/36 "2013-11-25T19:03:06Z")
And THAT’s why, you don’t. fuck. with the driver. \ ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/37 "2013-11-25T19:04:35Z")
The photos look like the sort of stuff people post on Facebook; presumably that’s where they got them. They could have used a nice formal graduation photo instead, I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/38 "2013-11-25T19:16:35Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > Wearing a bikini while driving is not a high-risk behavior. Driving with asshole passengers, however… there, you might have a case. According to the article, this was basically the argument of the dissenting judge - namely, that the guy sitting in back had been behaving like an asshole the whole time, so she ought not to have been surprised. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/39 "2013-11-25T19:21:13Z")
> [@dracoi](#): > > It’s not that I think she was under age while drinking, or even that I think she was drinking at the time of the accident. > > But surely it’s not an accident that the author/editor of the paper chose those two photos. Surely they had access to photos of her doing things other than drinking? It’s the Daily News. Total yellow journalism rag. Those were probably the _most_ titillating photos they could find of the driver. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2013, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759/40 "2013-11-25T19:24:55Z")
> [@Silver\_Fire](#): > > According to another passenger, that’s exactly what she did. He claims her hands were off the wheel for as long as 20 seconds while she tried to re-tie it. It’s in the linked article. So depends who you believe, I guess. > > I will say I’ve taken my hands off the wheel “for a split second”, as this driver claims she did, to open a soda or whatever and nothing happened. So my assumption is that the truth is closer to what her passenger stated and she overcorrected her fuck up. Based on nothing, of course. > > That guy was a total douche though, regardless. It wasn’t just another passenger who testified about the 20 seconds - it was the passenger who was suing the driver: > [@](#): > > Pelletier’s injuries cut short a promising football career at Yale University, and he sued Lahm for damages. He testified at the 2011 trial that Lahm had leaned forward for up to 20 seconds as she tried to retie her bikini top. She was going about 65 mph. His lawyers argued she should have pulled over and then covered up. That’s pretty relevant when deciding who to believe. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/girls-bikini-top-gets-untied-and-wrecks-car-acquitted/674759.md?page=3)