Car accidents happen every day across the US. If you look at all of them, you will see causes like mechanical failure, drug use, alcohol use, etc. Speeding causes plenty of car wrecks, as does tailgating or various road rage occurrences.
However, distracted driving is also very high up on the list, particularly concerning texting. In this article, we’ll look at distracted driving laws, and we’ll talk about whether they should be harsher than what they currently are.
Texas Texting Laws
No two states have identical distracted driving laws. In this article, we’ll use Texas texting laws as an example. In Texas, between 2017 and 2018, there was a 12% fatality decrease.
However, there are a couple of things that aren’t clear. There is no consensus as to whether:
- The current texting laws caused the drop-off
- The laws need to be harsher
At the moment, in Texas, it is illegal for someone to text while driving. Drivers are also not supposed to use a handheld device like a smartphone to make or answer a call while behind the wheel. This makes sense since, if you’re texting or trying to answer a smartphone with one or both hands, you can’t very well see what’s happening on the road ahead of you or around you.
However, in Texas, it is also only teens and inexperienced drivers who cannot use a smartphone while driving. Adults can use a smartphone while they drive, though they still cannot text. Also, even if the police catch an adult texting while driving, they will have to pay a fine, but it’s not very much.
The Texas laws are similar to most other state laws concerning texting and talking on smartphones, though the wording of other state’s laws might be a little different. Some states are a bit more stringent, while others are slightly laxer.
Law Enforcement Problems
Regardless of what state you’re in, you should not let anything distract you while you’re driving. That goes for texting and talking on your smartphone, but you also should avoid:
- Looking at something interesting out the window
- Eating and drinking
- Adjusting the radio or your other music or podcast listening device
You can definitely wreck your car if you do any of those things. The possible danger does not stop some drivers, though. They don’t seem to care what the law is: they’ll happily eat a Big Mac while flipping through radio stations with the other hand.
The problem is that even though there are anti-texting and anti-distracted driving laws in virtually every state, enforcing them is not that easy. Let’s say there’s a cop sitting off the highway in a speed trap. They see someone flying by at sixty-five miles per hour.
They think that the person was texting while behind the wheel. They turn on their lights and siren and go chasing after them. They might catch them, but by that time, the person has their phone back in their pocket, and they deny the whole thing.
How to Catch Lawbreakers
Catching lawbreakers who text or talk on the phone remains difficult. The cops can accuse a person, but unless they have concrete evidence, the driver can simply deny it. They can go to court and fight the ticket or fine if they want to do so.
The only way the cop can prove the person was texting or talking on their smartphone is if there is traffic camera footage or some other camera footage that supports that. The cops can feel frustration because of an evidence lack, but the judge is probably going to throw out the case if there is no irrefutable proof.
Changing the Laws
Some states want to make using a smartphone while behind the wheel illegal at all times if they have not done so already. That’s not a bad idea since it will probably lead to fewer wrecks.
However, this will still allow people to use phone call and texting technology such as Bluetooth. Drivers can talk to someone while driving or tell their Bluetooth setup to send them a text, and they can keep both hands on the steering wheel while they do so.
This is safer than texting or holding a phone with one hand, but it’s still not safe. A few states have at least talked about outlawing Bluetooth technology.
The chances that this will happen are remote, though. Bluetooth technology is a selling point for many luxury cars. People want to be able to talk or text one way or another while driving, and they will probably rebel if state governments decide to outlaw the practice completely.
Proving Distracted Driving Charges
Since some states still allow people to talk on a smartphone while driving and virtually all of them let people use Bluetooth, it’s difficult for another driver or the police to prove that technology distracted a driver. If they are not on camera committing the crime, the other driver or the cops will need to use circumstantial evidence.
They might look at whether the driver ran a red light or crossed a double yellow line into oncoming traffic. If they ran a stop sign, that might mean distracted driving happened.
These are more egregious traffic violations, and a judge and jury might buy that someone did these things because they were texting or talking with someone when the crash occurred. They also might look at when the crash happened and subpoena the driver’s cell phone records.
It remains challenging for either an injured driver or the police to conclusively establish distracted driving, not just concerning texting and cell phone usage, but also with playing with the radio, eating, etc. Distracted driving will likely remain a threat, at least until there are traffic cameras on every inch of America’s roads.
If you are a driver who feels another car hit you because of distracted driving, the best you can probably do at the moment is contact a good lawyer and look into your options.