Florida's Dori Slosberg Foundation is running this text messaging safety PSA in South Florida movie theaters. Pretty hokey, until it's chilling. … [Read more...]
Cleveland, Albany say no to texting
April 15, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Cleveland has become the latest big city to prohibit text messaging by drivers. Meanwhile, Albany County, N.Y., has prohibited texting behind the wheel. Both bans come in reaction to a perceived lack of action at the state level. Cleveland's City Council also called on Ohio's lawmakers to adopt a similar ban on driving and texting. The lead legislator on the Albany plan, Christopher Higgins, called texting while driving "an epidemic in this country." The Cleveland ban takes effect 90 days after the (supportive) mayor signs the legislation. Fines range from $150-$500. The Albany County ban … [Read more...]
Maryland bans text messaging by drivers
April 13, 2009 by 3 Comments
Maryland's governor has signed the text-messaging legislation forwarded to him by the state Senate. It takes effect Oct. 1, 2009. (This story originally filed March 2009.) Maryland's ban on texting by all drivers does not include the act of reading messages, thanks to an amendment tacked on by the House. This is intended to make enforcement easier, since police in theory won't pull over drivers who are just reading phone numbers. Read about the 2010 legislation to close the loophole. Gov. Martin O'Malley signed the Maryland texting ban on April 7, 2009. The governor had indicated he'd sign … [Read more...]
Tennessee texting bill grilled
April 8, 2009 by Leave a Comment
Tennessee legislators continue to dance around the issue of text messaging while behind the wheel. (Update: Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen signed a texting ban into law on May 13, 2009.) A month back, opponents of a Tennessee texting ban called for the attorney general to clarify if the dangerous practice was already illegal under state law (it was, sort of). Now they're reheating a tired and familiar argument. Rep. John Lundberg, R-Bristol, was grilled about his HB 107 on Tuesday. A fellow Republican asked why he was singling out texting while driving as opposed to, say, "eating a bowl of … [Read more...]
New offense: Drunken Driving & Texting
April 3, 2009 by Leave a Comment
From Albany, N.Y., home of the Legislature that can't figure out text messaging and driving don't mix: "(The officer) asked the driver, Amanda Murphy of Amsterdam, why she was stopped in the middle of the road with her car running. Murphy allegedly said she was sending a text message. She was charged with driving while intoxicated. (From the Times Union) From Waupun, Wisc.: "A 23-year-old Madison man, who police said was apparently distracted while text messaging behind the wheel, was taken into custody after his vehicle smashed into a parked car. ... The man was arrested on charges of … [Read more...]
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