Are We Ready for a Ban on DWT?
by Darla Mack
In a recent article by Textually.org, we learned that a teen in the UK was sentenced 14 years imprisonment for causing a fatal accident which resulted in the death of the other driver. The cause of this accident… Driving While Texting.
I have been a member of a few social media groups in which texting takes place heavily and I’ve seen a few messages pop up in which users would admit to texting while driving. I must admit… that I myself have done so, but its usually when I’m in an area where there isn’t traffic going on… and on country roads thats pretty common. But that doesn’t make it right. Are we subconsciously holding our phones when we should be holding the wheel?
I agree that the punishment should fit the crime, and I guess in this case the crime is reckless driving. But while the concept of implementing a new law or ban might seem appropriate, just how would you catch someone in the act?
In other news, 5 teens were killed in upstate NY when the driver (who was texting while driving) crashed her SUV into the back of a tractor-trailer killing herself and 4 passengers.
According to the article in the Daily News:
Tests conducted on the driver after the fiery crash showed the primary cause of the accident was driver inattention due to the apparent text messaging. Alcohol was not a factor.
While both of these instances are tragic, I’m left wondering just how they came to the conclusion to run these tests? Was it because there was a cell phone present in the vehicle?
In my opinion, reckless driving can be caused by many things. Things that we may do on a daily basis behind the wheel, such as eating, drinking, applying makeup, yelling at the kids in the back seat… basically anything that can cause a distraction… but my curiosity on this stems from the ages of the drivers. It’s my assumption (and I could be alone in thinking this) that because of their ages thats why this test has now come into play.
The fine for DWT if caught would be up to $100 which is the same as talking while driving.
