367-Pound Woman Passes Test, Keeps Driver’s License

A woman who was required to take a driving test because authorities thought she might be too fat to drive safely proved Friday she can operate a car even though she weighs 367 pounds.

Using a borrowed, beat-up Dodge Aspen that she had driven only once, Regina Guy passed the test with more than 75 people watching from a distance.

A state motor vehicle hearing examiner ordered Friday morning that she pass the test or forfeit her license.

“That’s it. I’m legal, guys,” Guy said afterward.

She remained angry that she had to prove that her weight doesn’t stop her from being a safe driver.

“Fat people are human. We deserve equal treatment,” said Guy, 25. “Because of my size, I should not be discriminated against.”

Guy’s problems began July 13, when she was stopped because the lights were not working properly on another car she had borrowed from a friend.

The officer wrote on his report to the Motor Vehicle Administration: “Due to this person’s obesity, she was unable to sit behind the wheel of the car.”

Guy was sitting in the center of the seat and was using her left hand and left foot to drive the car, the officer said.

“I feel that this driver should have special equipment on her car,” the officer wrote.

Guy, of Baltimore, denied that she was sitting in the center of the seat or was driving abnormally.

“How could I sit in the center? I couldn’t possibly drive from the center,” she said.

Friday, Guy sat behind the wheel of the car, which had no special equipment.

She said she was unhappy that the officer was absent from Friday’s hearing. “I still would like a chance to face my accuser,” she said.

Several members of the National Assn. to Advance Fat Acceptance were at the hearing to support Guy. Among them was Peggy Williams, owner of the station wagon that Guy was driving when she was stopped.

“It’s not fair. It’s just not fair,” Williams said. “Why is she being singled out to take a test when she did nothing to indicate she was a bad driver?”

Guy’s lawyer, Christopher Brown, said it was a clear case of discrimination against fat people. “The only reason she was singled out was because of her weight,” he said.

Williams said she can fit behind the wheel of her car even though she weighs 450 pounds, almost 100 pounds more than Guy.

“It’s not a question of her not having enough room. She has to pull the seat closer than I do to drive,” Williams said.