The Cochran Firm Legal Blog

On December 1, Colorado became the 19^th state in the country to ban texting while driving. This is a watered down version of the original bill, which would have banned all hand-held devices while driving. The bill was modified and passed last summer.

According to Colorado State Patrol, there were 51 people killed last year by distracted drivers, and 11 of those can be directly attributed to cell phone use. In a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration report, there were 6000 deaths across the US due to distracted driving. The National Safety Council states that on any given day, there are around 800,000 vehicles whose drivers are on cell phones, even in the states where this is illegal.

Different police departments across Colorado have said that, though texting while driving is now considered a crime, there is no push to target texting drivers. Rather, police will be looking for drivers who are weaving or those who blow through stop signs. One officer states that the law was meant to target those 17-years-old and younger who were using a cell phone, and older drivers who are texting or emailing from their phones. Those, he said, are the people they'll be looking for.

Colorado state representatives believe it was important to pass this bill due to the increasing number of young drivers who use cell phones and texting to communicate. With more young people, and inexperienced drivers, being distracted while they are on the road, it is important to have a law set in the books in which both police and civilians can look to for safety.

If you or a loved one has been injured in an auto accident because of a distracted driver, please contact the experienced auto accident attorneys at the Cochran Firm for an initial case consultation. We serve clients nationwide.