[ColdNoMore]

Carpool Lane Violation (zoom-by here)

A Nevada Highway Patrol trooper was stunned after he pulled over a hearse that was driving in the carpool lane on Monday, and the driver asked if the corpse he was transporting counted as a passenger.

Trooper Travis Smaka spotted the Chrysler minivan hearse going southbound in the HOV lane on Interstate 15, according to the Los Angeles Times. The driver appeared to be alone — but that was because Smaka was not counting ”the dearly departed in the back,” as Nevada Highway Patrol Southern Command later explained on Twitter.

So Smaka flashed the lights of his patrol car and pulled over the hearse driver, collecting his license and registration. He was expecting to hear one of the more typical excuses — that the driver was running late for an appointment or on his way to an emergency situation.

But instead, the driver nodded toward the rear of the minivan. Smaka took the hint and asked, “Oh, you have a deceased in the back?”

That’s when the driver pressed his luck and replied, "So, he doesn't count?" according to Fox News. The trooper had no choice but to break the bad news — cars are only allowed in the carpool lane when they’re carrying at least two “living, breathing people.”

“He’s not with us” he told the driver, then clarified, “This body was in the rear cargo and that doesn’t qualify as a seat.”