One of two motorists who had to be rescued in late August from floodwaters on Indian Bend Road entered a guilty plea Tuesday in Scottsdale City Court.
Scottsdale resident Leonard Wain, 70, pleaded guilty to reckless driving, a misdemeanor. He was fined $383.
Phoenix resident Tyler Smith, 24, was granted a continuance until Nov. 17 while the court considers additional information regarding the incident. Smith said alterations to his Nissan Altima made it more susceptible to stalling in water.
The two men had to be rescued after heavy rains flooded Indian Bend between Hayden and Scottsdale roads. Each followed other cars that were safely crossing the road, but they ran into trouble when the water rose to nearly 4 feet.
Firefighters from Scottsdale, Phoenix and Tempe performed a water rescue, and the event was televised nationally on cable news networks.
The two men were arrested and cited with reckless driving and failure to obey a traffic control device. Both were released at the scene.
Wain said it was difficult to judge whether he should've handled the situation differently.
"If it was dangerous, that would be one thing, but other cars were going," he said. "It's not like I decided just to go and nobody was there."
Smith said he received plenty of attention from friends and relatives and answered phone calls during the rescue from family who had watched it on TV.
"I'm just glad it's over," he said.
