Distracted Driving Penalties

[Gawdzilla Sama]

[serious] What we need is drones. They observe every driver on the road and send a Hellfire missile at the ones that aren't paying attention.

[Rank Stranger]

Personally I'd rather deal with cell-phone idiots on the road than cops who have yet another reason to harass peaceful citizens and extort money from them.

But they didn't ask my opinion 

[onlinebiker]

I actually made a cell call while driving yesterday....


I was following a box van - a big one - that was going down the country road I live on. In 1 mile he went across the centerline for no reason 3 times - and twice went off the road with 2 wheels off the pavement.

I called 911.

He went off the road several more times and forced a guy going the other way off the road by going over the center line....

I stayed back about 100 yards.

He finally pulled in a driveway.. I gave the dispatcher a blow by blow - then the tag number and address where the guy pulled in....

Probably drunk.

Or getting a hummer...

[Rank Stranger]

Snitch.

[Ranjr]

Last fall on campus, a young lady stepped onto a crosswalk.  It was lit and flashing.  She trusted she was safe.

A high school senior was visiting campus, driving the 4 lane divided street lined with trees and pedestrian traffic.  She didn't notice the flashing crosswalk because she was looking at her phone.  She hit the young lady in the crosswalk, killing her.

The penalty for texting, emailing, or using the internet is $250 the first time, $500 after that.  Same for any phone use in an active school zone.  Drivers 16- 20  are not allowed to touch a phone.  18 and under may not use a phone at all.  $50 if they do.

I never enter a crosswalk without making sure traffic sees me and is slowing down.  The girl who died on Garland Ave was also looking at her phone.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

I actually made a cell call while driving yesterday....


I was following a box van - a big one - that was going down the country road I live on. In 1 mile he went across the centerline for no reason 3 times - and twice went off the road with 2 wheels off the pavement.

I called 911.

He went off the road several more times and forced a guy going the other way off the road by going over the center line....

I stayed back about 100 yards.

He finally pulled in a driveway.. I gave the dispatcher a blow by blow - then the tag number and address where the guy pulled in....

Probably drunk.

Or getting a hummer...

So you were as bad as the drunk driver?

[onlinebiker]

I actually made a cell call while driving yesterday....


I was following a box van - a big one - that was going down the country road I live on. In 1 mile he went across the centerline for no reason 3 times - and twice went off the road with 2 wheels off the pavement.

I called 911.

He went off the road several more times and forced a guy going the other way off the road by going over the center line....

I stayed back about 100 yards.

He finally pulled in a driveway.. I gave the dispatcher a blow by blow - then the tag number and address where the guy pulled in....

Probably drunk.

Or getting a hummer...

So you were as bad as the drunk driver?

Not....

1. Hands free phone.
2. 40 years of on-air radio experience.
3. I can actually walk and chew gum.at the same time.

[Sal]

Snitch.

Not  cool, dude. All that "snitches get stitches" jazz is such bullshit.

[Jackalope]

Washington state USA, $136 for first and $234 for second offense.

Considering the relative hazard / penalty compared to DUI, I'd prefer it were higher.

[Rank Stranger]

Snitch.

Not  cool, dude. All that "snitches get stitches" jazz is such bullshit.

Is it?

If I follow a drunk slowly until he gets off the highway so that nobody will run into him- then wish him the best and carry on with my merry way- he and his family are better off for it.

Law enforcement in the U.S. is like a box jellyfish.  It's a damn shitty thing to provoke contact for somebody unless there's an immediate reason to do so.  Most drunks are no worse than the phone-addled.  You're putting a man's job, health, and finances at risk by snitching on him.

Do that if you want- I'm told that it's a free country.  But I won't do it unless somebody's life is truly and immediately at risk.  Vast majority of the time that's not the case.