Since texting while driving became illegal in
Ohio on March 1, Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) officers have been on the
lookout for distracted drivers.
Officers are now able to issue citations for
drivers texting behind the wheel, but it's only a secondary offense.
"That means, in other words, you must be
stopped for some kind of primary offense, which would usually be engaged in some sort of other driving or probable cause," said Sgt.
Eric Gonzalez, Assistant Post Commander of the Toledo Highway Patrol Post.
But that's not the case for juveniles. The
law says anyone under 18 can be stopped for distracted driving as a primary
offense. Sgt. Gonzalez said teens are still learning, and need to keep all
their attention on the roads.
"They need to be more observant of the
roadway rather than the phone or an iPod," he said.
The problem with the new law is enforcement.
So far, Gonzalez said OSHP has not issued any citations in the Toledo area. In
order to issue a citation, an officer has to catch a driver in the act, and
prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the law was broken.
Some drivers may be grateful for that detail.
"I'm not a fan of more reasons to get pulled
over," said Sue Miller. "But people should be paying attention while driving
and definitely shouldn't be texting."
Patrolmen say if a person is driving 45 miles
per hour, they should be at least 99 feet from the vehicle in front of them –
that's less than two seconds of driving time. Every second a driver's eyes are
on their phone, they're a danger to themselves and everyone around them.
Copyright
2013 Toledo News Now. All rights reserved.
All content © Copyright 2000 - 2013 WorldNow and Toledo News Now, a Raycom Media Station. 
