Man who blocked busy highway with marriage proposal faces criminal charges

A 24-year-old man who stopped traffic on one of
Houston’s busiest highways to propose to his
girlfriend may not get the happy ending he was
hoping for.
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Houston Police Department spokeswoman Jodi Silva
confirmed Vidal Valladares will be charged with
obstruction of highway, which is a Class B
misdemeanor. Silva said the charge is now winding its
way through the Harris County court system.
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He will have the option of turning himself in, filling
out the paperwork and immediately getting bonded
out, she said. It was unclear if the soon-to-be-wife or
the friends who helped block traffic will be charged,
as well.
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In a video posted on Instagram, Valladares enlisted
his friends to stand in front of lanes of traffic while
he proposed to his girlfriend Michelle Wycoff in the
middle of the highway near downtown Houston.
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“I just wanted to do something different,” Valladares
said.
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To get to a party Valladares made up as a ruse, the
couple took the highway, which is one of Wycoff’s
favorite spots. Valladares took her on a motorcycle
ride on freeway on their second date.
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That’s when Valladares told his girlfriend of a year
and half to get out of the car.
“I said, ‘Are you serious?'” Wycoff said. “Then I saw all
my family and friends with cameras and I looked
where Vidal was and he was down on one knee.
“Honestly, I didn’t think about if it was a good idea
or a bad idea. I was just so happy in the moment.
I love him so much.”
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Valladares said his friends and family, who were
following closely behind, stopped traffic for about 35
seconds while he popped the question
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“I never really thought about causing an accident. I thought about my girlfriend,” he said.
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The hopeless romantic posted a photo of the
proposal to Instagram with the caption, “When you
shut down one of the biggest and busiest freeways in
the entire country (I45) and you ask your girl if she
wants to marry u, That moment is priceless love u #
shesaidyes.”
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While the hashtag implies she said “yes” and a hug
quickly ensued after he dropped to one knee, The
video can be viewed on Instagram.
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The charge came hours after Houston Police
Department said they would not seek charges against
the couple because police were not called to the
scene and the situation was cleared before police
could see it on patrol.
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“It appears we were not called to the scene and it
more than likely happened quickly before our
officers saw it on patrol,” HPD spokesman Victor
Senties said. “While we’re happy for the couple,
this is not something we would want to encourage
anyone to do. People could have lost their lives
stopping on the freeway like that.”
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However, that won’t necessarily be the case for any
copy-cats.
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“If there was a similar scenario and the officers
were called to the scene to witness it, the officers
would tell them to clear the roadway and if they
refused, they could be arrested with blocking a
roadway, which is a Class B misdemeanor,” Senties
said.
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Texas Department of Transportation agreed that the
act was both against the law and dangerous.