Monterey County Sheriff issues a response to videos showing her being pulled over for speeding.

Monterey County Sheriff Tina Nieto responded to videos that recently went public showing California Highway Patrol officers pulling her over for speeding on Highway 101 in South County.

In a statement released Thursday, July 25, Nieto said, “I should have been more aware of my speed.”

“As sheriff, I understand the importance of adhering to our traffic regulations,” she said. “I should set a better example for my community, and I’m committed to doing so in the future.”

CHP dashcam footage, originally reported by news station KION, shows Nieto being pulled over by officers three times over a span of eight months for reportedly going 95mph on the stretch of the highway with a speed limit of 65mph. The instances span from September 2023 to May of 2024.

During a pullover in March, an officer asks Nieto if she was running “Code 3” (a police term for responding to a call with lights and sirens) as she was driving a county-issued vehicle, which Nieto responded the vehicle hadn’t been upgraded yet with lights and sirens.

In the most recent pullover in May, Nieto reportedly declined to show an officer her license, and asked for his supervisor. 

No citations were issued in any of the incidents.

Nieto said that on one of the traffic stops in 2023, she was driving back home on her personal time from Southern California.

“As some of you might have experienced yourselves, I knew I had made a mistake as soon as I saw those red and blue lights flashing behind me,” she said.

On another stop, Nieto noted, she was on the job, but acknowledged her “error” because “my task at the time did not rise to the level of a response that required traveling over the speed limit.”

“The CHP officers who contacted me were professional and courteous during these traffic stops,” she said. “As seen in the dash camera video, I did not use my position to seek a break or avoid a citation at any time. As with any traffic stop, issuing a citation is at the officer’s discretion.”

The dashcam footage, provided by CHP to the Weekly via a Public Records Act request, is viewable below.