It is now officially illegal to text while driving in Pennsylvania.
You now do so at your own risk – both to your health, and to the health of your wallet. If you’re caught texting by an officer it will cost you $50.
But that’s the problem with this law. I don’t think very many people are going to be caught.
To be honest, I don’t think police are going to spend a lot of time enforcing it. The reason is because the law has no teeth in it and will be next to impossible to enforce.
Upper Darby top cop Mike Chitwood, who is doing a press event this morning at Upper Darby High School, is already admitting as much.
The problem is how exactly is an officer supposed to know if a person is texting or simply dialing a phone number?
You read it right. Dialing and talking on a hand-held cell phone is not illegal under this bill; texting is. However, you can text if the car is not in motion, such as sitting at a red light.
Let’s say a cop stops a person who he believes is texting. If the driver insists he or she was merely dialing a phone number, what does the cop do?
Delco District Attorney Jack Whelan was our guest on our ‘Live From the Newsroom’ show last night and he pretty much said the same thing.
But the D.A. also indicated that this was a start, and that he would support a ban on use of hand-held devices while driving. Whelan also will be doing a program today at Ridley High School to stress the importance of not texting while driving to a group that needs to hear it - high school kids who are new drivers.
That’s what this bill should have done. Unfortunately, it does not.
My guess is the reaction of most drivers out there? LOL.
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