U.S. Teens Ingoring Texting-While-Driving Law

Well, that's the majority of careless teenagers for you.

That pisses me off. It's not the fact that they don't care if police can prove whether or not they're texting, I'm 22 and am afraid that texting will lead to hitting me and someone getting hurt. But teenagers don't think that far ahead. Morons.

Natural selection.

Studies prove that texting is more dangerous then drunk driving. I bike and I am terrified of people texting. They are like drunk drivers driving in the daytime. I've seen many teens texting while driving and almost causing accidents. I myself tried texting while driving and realized I am a much better driver drunk then while trying to text.

It's not natural selection when both of you die when they crash into you XD

I hope natural selection works on these kids. I'm a teenager myself but I would never dream of putting my life on the line just to text.

I just hope that the natural selection process doesn't endanger other people.

I text while driving all the time, but I don't need to look down at my phone to do it. I have the keys memorized, but that doesn't mean I'm not concentrating on it! I scared the pooh out of myself one night, I started to drift onto the gravel next to the road WHILE I WAS LOOKING OUT THE WINDOW. I still do it, but mostly just at stop signs/lights now, and I try not to when there are other cars around. I know I wouldn't like it if someone was texting while driving next to me, so I try to return the favor. But like someone said above, it's natural selection. If I'm stupid enough to do it (when no other cars are around) then I deserve to crash and die (hopefully I won't).

If they're caught, cut their hands off and then they can't text anymore. Problem solved.

Make them listen to the family of victims' stories. That ought to make them stop.

Nor could they drive :S

"She also added that it would be difficult to prove, as the messaging would be completed by the time the police approached the driver's window."

Yep. No such thing as a sent box.

This is pure stupidity.

First of all; texting.

Secondly; while you're driving? You look down and focus on a 3 inch screen while driving.

God damned us all, the world is full of idiots.

Also try proving you're not dialing a number instead of texting. The cops near where I live told the city counsels that it was an unenforceable law and they would never waste their time arguing against the charge.

Personally, I think any phone use should be outlawed while driving. Most highways in the US have shoulders large and safe enough to park on and side streets have more than enough temporary parking so you can take/make a phone call. God forbid, you let your voice mail take the call.

Maybe we should give those teenagers a few of our Aussie TAC-style ads, but this time it won't be against drink driving. More gruesome facts and images might deter those idiotic teenagers from causing more deaths/injuries.

The problem is it's so often that other people are hurt by these selfish actions. Driving requires all of your attention, you shouldn't be texting or calling/talking on your phone EVER while driving. Add to that drug/drunk driving, map reading, putting on makeup, turning round to talk to your kids and all the other stupid things people do. Even the hands free kits on phones are dangerous because your attention is still focused somewhere else.

Don't be selfish, people. If you need to make a call/send a text pull over ffs or get your passenger to call/text for you cause if you crash you might just kill someone else as well as yourself.

I turn my cell off when i enter my car, when i reach my destination i turn it back on. duh.

well go figure...we got a lot of stupid teens these days..Not saying I didnt do my share of stupid things as a teens but nothing that dumb...at least that I can remember haha.Most my friends 19-21 still text in they're car as long as no cops are around.

It's a very similar situation to when wearing seat belts were made law. It was slow to catch on, lots of 'excuses' not to, ignoring the simple safety facts that we all pretty much know and accept today. Even in terms of proving it at the time and having the charges stick. In the end it worked and we're all safer for it.

As for texting, it's the same basic principal. You text when not around other cars... ok, do you not wear your seat belt when no other cars are around too? Messages have time stamps and if you ever went to court I'm sure they would have no problem proving it on that end. It's not 'natural selection' if you kill a family in a minivan along with yourself. etc etc, get real people.

It's a good step in the right direction and it will catch on, it is just going to take some time like it did with seat belts. In 10 years we'll be looking back saying it's hard to believe we were stupid enough to do it.

"U.S. Teens Ingoring Texting-While-Driving Law"

"Ingoring"

wat

That's why we have lawyers. They get into an accident with you, you sopena their cell phone records see that they were texting, you take away their livelyhood. When they work at mcdonalds the rest of their life no one to blame them but themselves.

However this only works if they are by themselves, always that "reasonable doubt" that the other person could have been texting for them.

"wat"...

What?

Nice going....

STOP TEXTING WHILE DRIVING!! Try walking in a straight line while texting. Same thing happens on the road. STOP IT!!!!!

"blaming her actions on being 'bored and lonely.'

Then don't drive alone, or get off the road so I can get home safely!

all the cops have to do is if they see you driving erratically, pull you over and tell them you want to see their phone and the last text message sent will show the date and time. Easy way to prove if you were just texting while driving.

Sure it is. You weren't fit enough so you got in a there way and they hit you. Survival of the fittest.

If you're stupid enough to let them check it

When my friends send text messages to me, http://www.drivesafe.ly/ mobile application respond with a message I am not in a position to look at their messages. I am not distracted from what I do.

I think the reason people ignore the laws first of all is because the fines are like a little slap on the hand. Not big enough to worry about, just an annoyance.
Most teenagers are not going to be responsible enough to care if they hit and kill someone. Some do, but most do not, it is a simple fact of life. As far as that goes, many adults don't care either. Yeah, I am talking about you idiot that is passing me at 10 mph over the posted speed limit, or blasting right on through the Crosswalk while people are trying to cross the street.....see it myself every single day! Most people simply do not give a rats ass if they run over someone or not. They are so self centered and involved in what they are doing, they don't care or notice what is going on around them, even while driving. It is a sad state of human nature these days.
Make a law that you cannot use a cell phone period while you are driving, and if you are caught, the fine is $2500. While they are at it, raise the fines on everything else through the roof as well.
A few tickets that actually hurt, and cause a little hardship, and people will start thinking a little bit more about what they are doing, in my humble opinion.

Over legislation: reckless driving/endangerment should always be dealt with by Police, and TWD is as reckless an act as you can do.

No similarities at all. You are not more likely to hit another car because you don't wear a seat-belt. If anything, you are likely to drive more cautiously, as you know that if you get in an accident, you are more likely to die.
Texting while driving is reckless endangerment, and should be treated as such. Seat-belts should have been a personal choice, and may have caused as much harm as it prevented.

I hope that comment was a joke, if it wasn't I think your a selfish prick for thinking like that.