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Monday, August 02, 2010

Ind. Law - "Enforcement lax for Indiana's ban on teen texting while driving"

Lesley Stedman Weidenbener of the Louisville Courier Journal has a long story dated August 1st, that begins:

INDIANAPOLIS — More than a year after Indiana banned young drivers from using cell phones and other mobile devices while behind the wheel, police have issued almost no tickets for the offense, and some teens say their friends are texting unchecked.

Indiana State Police ticketed only one driver for violating the cell phone ban, and a state agency that tracks infractions for 160 police departments could find just two other citations under the law that took effect July 1, 2009.

“There’s really not a police agency that can dedicate someone just to looking for young-looking drivers,” said state police First Sgt. Dave Bursten. “Maybe in a small police agency where everybody knows everybody, they’ll see Mary Jo Thompson driving with a phone and know that she just got her license two months ago. But for other agencies, there are a lot of complexities, so it’s just not a top-tier item.”

Indiana’s law — like one that took affect [sic.] in Kentucky on July 15 — bans cell phone use for drivers under 18.

But to issue a citation — punishable by a fine up to $500 — police have to witness a driver who looks under age 18 using a mobile device. After a stop, the officer must then establish when the driver received his or her license — before or after the law took effect.

That determines whether the law applies to the driver, although that issue will go away this year as all teen drivers receive their licenses under the new law.

“It’s kind of complicated,” Bursten said.

And teens can be sneaky about using cell phones.

There was a similar story in January about a South Bend ordinance banning cell phones in school zones. From a Jan. 13, 2010 ILB entry:
The South Bend Tribune had a story Jan. 6, 2010 headlined "Cell phone ban in South Bend brings few tickets: Enforcement spotty in school zones."

Posted by Marcia Oddi on August 2, 2010 11:58 AM
Posted to Indiana Law