Texting while driving bans: Thoughts of cops and lawyers?

[mstp1992]

Easy boys..........

Z

Just giving the guy a hard time

 

[Old_wrestling_fan]

You are claiming to see an accident (or just a "close" one) once a week? I'm thinking you might be the terrible driver.

What? How would me seeing someone else drifting out of their lane, running a red light, turning in front of someone, etc, make me a bad driver?

Just yesterday I saw one young gal screech to a stop at a red light that everyone else, including myself, had already stopped at. Yep...she was texting while driving.

If sitting at a stop light watching someone else nearly run a red light at a very busy intersection makes me a bad driver then I guess I am a bad driver.

 

[Hy_dro]

You're a funny guy. A bit paranoid, but funny nonetheless. The syntax with which you choose to express yourself I suspect belies your true linguistic abilities.

That's a compliment, by the way.

Da fuq

 

[BubsFinn]

These days, cops have open laptops in their cars. They are constantly looking at the screen and typing. Any texting ban should include this.

 

[INXS83]

Iowa is slowly moving towards making texting while driving a primary offense, meaning a law enforcement official can pull you over for observing you do it. In today's DI there is a quote from a defense attorney (Admittedly not a disinterested party), that said these charges will be very hard to prove? "I mean, they would have to prove the person was actually texting", said Adam Pollack. He added that prosecutor would need to subpoena phone records. Why? If an officer sees you with a device in your hand working at typing something out isn't that enough? If you get a ticket for jaywalking you don't need video evidence.
Could the cop immediately seize a phone as evidence if someone denied they were texting when stopped?
I'm highly in favor of the ban. I'm sick of seeing people texting while driving. Sick of people drifting into my lane coming from the opposite direction as they fight to drive and type at the same time. I almost got clipped by a kid on 4th Ave. this week after dropping off my oldest at City High. Kid driving a red minivan going around the corner with a phone in his hand and his thumb clearly trying to type.

I don't think there is any 'quick fix' to the dilemma of using mobile devices in moving vehicles. People are going to do it even if you increase the fines. The desire to 'connect' is strong and addictive.

A good start would be for fines, penalties and charges be greatly enhanced for those who, upon proper post-accident investigation, were found to have been texting and caused the accident.

There aren't enough traffic officers to pull over all the texting while driving violators. We can't afford to hire more to cover it and we wouldn't want to. As others have said, do we really want 'big brother' to have even more intrusion into our lives?

 

[INXS83]

These days, cops have open laptops in their cars. They are constantly looking at the screen and typing. Any texting ban should include this.

I recently spoke to an Iowa DOT officer about this. He said they have new protocols in place the prevent them from using their laptops while driving, unless it is an emergency. They are supposed to follow the same laws as Joe Q. Public.

 

[SSG T]

I agree with you. You can't tell the difference between scrolling contacts and texting in a split second. I had a lady follow me into a gas station and chew my ass for texting and endangering her and her kids. I wasn't texting, simply swiping to answer a call. When I'm in my car I hold my phone with my right hand and use the cars Bluetooth.
If you're gonna pull people over for texting fine, however they need to ban any use of a cell phone that isn't hands free then.
If I have to give my phone up for swiping to make a call, I'm losing my shit.

Your car has bluetooth but no way to answer the call hitting a button on the steering wheel? I can make and answer calls in my car without touching my phone and without my hands leaving the steering wheel.

 

[Lone Clone]

What? How would me seeing someone else drifting out of their lane, running a red light, turning in front of someone, etc, make me a bad driver?

Just yesterday I saw one young gal screech to a stop at a red light that everyone else, including myself, had already stopped at. Yep...she was texting while driving.

If sitting at a stop light watching someone else nearly run a red light at a very busy intersection makes me a bad driver then I guess I am a bad driver.

I believe you. Of course, it depends on the definition of what constitutes a near accident. I don't drive all that much, but I'd guess that about half the time I see at least one example of driving that could cause an accident. Not necessarily a fatal, but an accident.

 

[theIowaHawk]

What? How would me seeing someone else drifting out of their lane, running a red light, turning in front of someone, etc, make me a bad driver?

Just yesterday I saw one young gal screech to a stop at a red light that everyone else, including myself, had already stopped at. Yep...she was texting while driving.

If sitting at a stop light watching someone else nearly run a red light at a very busy intersection makes me a bad driver then I guess I am a bad driver.

Huh? I'm saying that, if you do indeed see accidents/near on a weekly basis...you seem to be the constant, are you sure it isn't you?

Oh, someone "nearly running a red light" = a near accident? Got ya.

 

[theIowaHawk]

I recently spoke to an Iowa DOT officer about this. He said they have new protocols in place the prevent them from using their laptops while driving, unless it is an emergency. They are supposed to follow the same laws as Joe Q. Public.

Yes, I wonder which of those you would use as the key word?

 

[theIowaHawk]

A good start would be for fines, penalties and charges be greatly enhanced for those who, upon proper post-accident investigation, were found to have been texting and caused the accident.

This is really what the law was all about. Nobody was, realistically, going to be pulled over for texting, it was always going to be after an accident. It creates legal liability, and a way to tack on fines. Very similar to "failure to maintain control", as in, it was snowy, your car (through relatively little fault of your own, often) slide off the road, guilty, you failed to maintain control. Obviously texting is intentional, but that doesn't mean the texting is, in fact, what caused the accident.

 

[Madman_1]

"I'm a really good driver when I'm buzzed...I pay more attention."

I always drove better drunk than most people sober.

.

 

[Wendy79]

I always drove better drunk than most people sober.

.

Until I can have an unbiased 3rd party (or three) confirm that, I'll remain skeptical.

 

[Chewback]

Disable texting and internet, sure. Disable your entire phone, hell no. I spend 4-6 hrs a day in my car, what if an emergency comes up when I'm 20 min into a 4 hr drive?

Same thing you would have done 25 or 30 years ago - find out about it later.

 

[Derekd3408]

Same thing you would have done 25 or 30 years ago - find out about it later.

Is this 25 or 30 years ago? Why don't we just get rid of cell phones all together. Go back to the house phone with no answering machine.

 

[hawkifann]

I guess to create specificity. To take any doubt out of the officers mind as to what to do. If the legislature passes the law, and the Branstad passes it then it's clear that the specific act of texting while driving is bad. Careless driving is nebulous and hard to prove.

Depending on how the law is written, this could be just as nebulous. Let's say I'm charged/ticketed for "texting" while driving, but can actually prove that I was doing something else - email, GPS, weather, pressing home button on iPhone to activate Siri voice dialing, etc.? Does that then nullify the texting charge since I wasn't texting?

 

[Super Hawk]

I almost got clipped by a kid on 4th Ave. this week after dropping off my oldest at City High. Kid driving a red minivan going around the corner with a phone in his hand and his thumb clearly trying to type.

Why you always gotta bring up color, dog?

 

[Super Hawk]

I only use my phone with the bluetooth and the buttons on the steering wheel, and I don't initiate calls when the car is in motion. I still don't like doing it, because I firmly believe those studies are right when they say that hands-free telephone conversation is distracting.

LOL, so then why the hell do you do it?

"I firmly believe that what I am doing is extremely dangerous, but I continue to do it anyway."

Brilliant.

 

[Super Hawk]

I recently spoke to an Iowa DOT officer about this. He said they have new protocols in place the prevent them from using their laptops while driving, unless it is an emergency. They are supposed to follow the same laws as Joe Q. Public.

LOL, I'm sure they will.

I don't know how many times in my life that I've seen a patrol car approaching either a stop sign or red light during "non-peak" traffic hours, quickly flip their lights on, then turn them back off as soon as they clear the intersection.

Nope, no sense of entitlement to wantonly disobey the rules that everyone else has to abide by there. Not at all.

 

[Hawkman98]

LOL, I'm sure they will.

I don't know how many times in my life that I've seen a patrol car approaching either a stop sign or red light during "non-peak" traffic hours, quickly flip their lights on, then turn them back off as soon as they clear the intersection.

Nope, no sense of entitlement to wantonly disobey the rules that everyone else has to abide by there. Not at all.

Did you call and report this so the situation is followed up on? Or are you just assuming the officer did this to get through a traffic light? Instead of assuming, call and have it figured out.

 

[Super Hawk]

Did you call and report this so the situation is followed up on? Or are you just assuming the officer did this to get through a traffic light? Instead of assuming, call and have it figured out.

LOL, my time is way too valuable to waste on nonsense like that.

And it is not an "assumption" as to what they were doing. They were not in a hurry or traveling at a high rate of speed. It was late at night, and they simply didn't feel like stopping.

 

[theIowaHawk]

LOL, I'm sure they will.

I don't know how many times in my life that I've seen a patrol car approaching either a stop sign or red light during "non-peak" traffic hours, quickly flip their lights on, then turn them back off as soon as they clear the intersection.

Nope, no sense of entitlement to wantonly disobey the rules that everyone else has to abide by there. Not at all.

I hear this claimed every so often, not once have I ever witnessed it. I'm critical of LEOs, but come on.

 

[Chewback]

Is this 25 or 30 years ago? Why don't we just get rid of cell phones all together. Go back to the house phone with no answering machine.

That wasn't all bad.

 

[Hawkman98]

LOL, my time is way too valuable to waste on nonsense like that.

And it is not an "assumption" as to what they were doing. They were not in a hurry or traveling at a high rate of speed. It was late at night, and they simply didn't feel like stopping.

If it's not worth your time then don't waste your time talking about it on a message board. You have no idea if they were on a way to a call. You are assuming. Just because they didn't have their lights on doesn't mean they weren't responding to some sort of call that wasn't an emergency, but needed to get there in a timely matter. Cops get paid to drive around, why would you think they are in a hurry to make it through a stop light if they weren't going somewhere?