Car Drivers Continue to Ignore Cell Phone Laws While Driving
San Diego County is among the many counties in California that see drivers continue to ignore the hands-free cell phone law. California made it illegal to talk on a handheld phone device while driving last year on July 1, 2008, but drivers cannot seem to comply. The amount of car drivers being cited seems to grow more and more each month, especially in San Diego, despite the amount of authorities on the lookout for it.
Many motor vehicle owners adapted to the law by getting earpieces such as Bluetooth-enabled headsets to connect to their phones, yet California Highway Patrol wrote 12,596 tickets statewide last month for cell phone and texting-while-driving violations, a record since the laws have been effective. San Diego itself grabbed a record in May with 994 violations, as opposed to 300 last August when the city start fully enforcing the law. For more information about San Diego cell phone while driving violators, you may want to read this SignOnSanDiego.com story.
The minimum fine for first-time violators in San Diego County is $132, and repeat offenders are charged $246. The purpose of the law was to reduce driver distractions and improve safety, but many cannot resist the urge to get on their phone. Most officials were frustrated that motorists were outright defying the laws put in place, but others were a little more laid back, noting that people consistently speed in their vehicles despite it being illegal.
Some criticisms to the cell phone law are that is it poorly crafted, arguing that it does not prohibit drivers from dialing and checking phone messages, as long as they are not talking or texting. Still, many find it is just as dangerous to use a headset as it is to use a handheld device and should be avoided entirely. A study released last week by researchers with Car and Driver Magazine found that texting while steering is more dangerous than driving while drunk. A safety council recently launched a nationwide billboard campaign entitled "Death by Cell Phone" to help educate motorists about these problems.
One thing for certain is that using a phone or talking on the phone can take your hands and brain away from the wheel and the road, both of which require maximum attention at all times to avoid serious collisions, accidents, and deaths, which are not worth the few minute conversations that are going on on the phones.
If you or anyone you know has ever been injured or killed in a San Diego cell phone while driving car crash, please contact San Diego car wreck attorney Ross Jurewitz and the San Diego personal injury lawyers at the Jurewitz Law Group at (619) 233-5020. You may also contact these San Diego injury attorneys online here.
