License, registration…and cellphone
Texting while driving is dangerous, and a new report from the American Automobile Association suggests that even using voice commands to control your device is dangerous too.
So will a driver’s cell records soon become part of investigating accidents? A state lawmaker in New Jersey has proposed a bill to allow law enforcement to confiscate a phone if they have “reasonable grounds” to believe it contributed to a crash.
Udi Ofer of New Jersey’s American Civil Liberties Union says this is not a good idea.
“This bill would side-step basic and long held constitutional protection.”
Fourth Amendment rights against unreasonable search and seizure, for instance. But in New Jersey alone in 2011, highway safety organizations estimate there were nearly 2,000 accidents caused by handheld devices.
Click on the audio player above to hear more about how you can take steps in your own life to limit distractions while driving.
There’s a lot happening in the world. Through it all, Marketplace is here for you.
You rely on Marketplace to break down the world’s events and tell you how it affects you in a fact-based, approachable way. We rely on your financial support to keep making that possible.
Your donation today powers the independent journalism that you rely on. For just $5/month, you can help sustain Marketplace so we can keep reporting on the things that matter to you.
