Texting Is Still A Problem On Our Roads
Michael Babboni
Car Accidents
As of 2015, in the state of Florida alone, our state and city police recorded over 45000 crashes that were the result of what is called “distracted driving.” This doesn’t mean that the drivers were drunk. On the contrary, in the cast of most distracted driving incidents, the drivers were alert and sober; they were just weren’t paying attention to the road.Of those 45000 accidents, 214 of the crashes, tragically, resulted in death. And of those 214, 198 of the victims were the drivers themselves. How does distracted driving happen? Unfortunately, it’s quite simple, and it’s quite likely that almost anyone that drives has been guilty of doing this. Distracted driving happens most frequently these days when people start paying more attention to their phone than the road.
Eyes On The Screen, Not The Road
The 21st century phenomenon of the “smartphone” has been both a blessing and a curse. On the one hand, the idea of a portable computer, complete with phone, photo and video camera, as well as access to the Internet seems like a miracle device out of science fiction television shows like Star Trek. It’s made our lives much more convenient and accessible. On the other hand, the very ease of phones tempts people to use them at inopportune moments, such as while watching a movie in a theater or, more dangerously, while driving a car.
This is particularly true when it comes to texting and/or social media. The allure of quickly typing out a short text response is often too great for many people to ignore. Many people justify it as “I’m only going to take a few seconds, and then it’s back to concentrating on the road.” But a lot can happen on a Florida road in just a few seconds. A car in front of you can stop suddenly, or that car merging into the freeway may be assuming you’ll slow down to allow more room to safely enter the lane. These and other incidents can occur in those split seconds when a person starts tapping away at a message on the phone.
This is why there’s been a huge jump in distracted driving related accidents in the last five years for the state of Florida. It’s incredibly easy to succumb to temptation, and, unfortunately, there are no serious legal consequences for doing so.
More Prevalent Than Drunk Driving
Drunk driving has, thankfully, been taken more seriously by more law enforcement around the country in the last few decades. Now, if you are caught by police officers intoxicated while driving, you can be charged, face a day in court, and eventually get your license suspended or even spend time in jail depending on the severity of your drunkenness, or if you are repeat offender.
Despite the fact that distracted driving because of texting and social media is far more common today than drunk driving, it does not have the same serious legal ramifications. In fact, it wasn’t even until 2009 that texting and other usage of the smartphone while driving was even declared illegal in Florida. Even then, the illegality of texting is what the law considers a secondary offense.
Not Seriously Illegal
A secondary offense means that while it is illegal for drivers to text or otherwise use their smartphones while driving, that is not enough reason for a police officer to pull a driver over. However, if a police officer notices that a driver is swerving, has a damaged tail light, is driving slower than usual, or has some other legal reason to stop a driver, then, if that officer catches the driver texting, a fine may be applied.
Compared to the suspension of driving privileges and even possible jail sentence that a drunk driver may receive, especially if deaths are involved, it’s easy to see why thousands of people all over Florida regularly ignore the law and continue to use their phones while driving.
It’s Evidence You Can Use
However, the nature of text messages and other social media mean that if a distracted driver gets into an accident with you, those same text messages are now evidence of their negligence on the road. Unless a driver commits an unethical act in an attempt to not get caught—such as deleting messages and instructing recipients to do the same on their end—you have immediate evidence at hand.
Sadly, distracted driving related accidents are continuing to rise in Florida, so every year, the odds that you may inadvertently get caught in such an incident are also increasing. But if it happens to you, you should not simply accept it. Talk to an accident lawyer and explain the situation. You can find out very quickly exactly what kind of case you have and what you and your lawyer can do to get the justice you deserve.