He drove his car into a raging flood. Cops saved him — then hit him with four tickets

A Scottsdale motorist was rescued from raging floodwaters, only to be hit with four citations — one for violating Arizona’s “Stupid Motorist Law,” according to ABC 15.

“I didn’t see how powerful the water was at the time,” the driver, 20-year-old Cooper Moore, told ABC 15. “I just thought it was more convenient going through this,” he said, talking about how he drove around barricades on the flooded road.

Water went halfway up his tires and his car stalled out, ABC 15 reported. Moore sat on top of his car until rescuers came and walked him to safety.

Moore said he received four citations from the Scottsdale Police Department, according to CBS 5. One of the citations was for the “Stupid Motorist Law,” which means drivers are liable for the cost of an emergency response if they do something like drive around barricades on a flooded road.

“I think they gave me too many consequences,” Moore told CBS 5. “It’s a small mistake.”

On Sunday night, the same night Moore was cited, a man who also drove around barricades died after his car was swept into rushing floodwaters south of Tucson, according to the Arizona Daily Star. Rescue crews could not get to the car for two hours because the water was running too fast, the Daily Star reported.

Phoenix Fire Captain Rob McDade told KTAR that his department won’t penalize those who need a swift-water rescue though they ask that people “please try to use better judgement.”

“When you’re there, sure our guys scratch their heads,” he told the station. “We do risk our lives, (but) that’s why we come to work.”

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office doesn’t enforce the “Stupid Motorist Law” at all, according to Cronkite News Service.

“We don’t charge people under the ‘Stupid Motorist Law’ Deputy Kevin Kraayenbrink told Cronkite News Service. “This is part of your tax dollars. We’re here. It’s free.”