| State
Senate Republican Leader Louis C. DeLuca (R-Woodbury) announced
today that the State Senate has passed a public safety measure
to make “distracted driving” a citable offense.
Distracted, or inattentive, driving is believed to be the
highest percentage cause of rear-end collisions in the state,
but there is currently no moving violation in statute for
police officers to cite in these incidents. Senator DeLuca
first introduced this legislation two years ago when Woodbury
police officer Thomas Story brought the issue to his attention.
“This law
will not require extra manpower or a new layer of bureaucracy,
it is simply matter of providing more discretionary latitude
to our police officers in making our roads more safe,”
said Senator DeLuca. “I always try to seek out input
from local police officers, because they’re the ones
out there actually doing the hard work of ensuring the public
safety, and they have been telling me for years that this
kind of law will make their jobs a bit easier. I am pleased
that we were able to pass this bill on their behalf.”
According to
Senator DeLuca, the fine for the violation of distracted
driving will be $55. Several other states, including Delaware,
Idaho and Wisconsin, have already enacted legislation regarding
inattentive or distracted driving.
“This
is not a witch hunt or some sort of anti-cell phone bill,
it will simply give the police the means to properly cite
a common moving violation,” added Senator DeLuca. |
