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Senate committee approves texting ban

| February 25, 2010 11:00 PM

BOISE (AP) - A bill to ban texting while driving is motoring through the Idaho Legislature.

The Senate Transportation Committee unanimously approved a bill Thursday that would give police officers the power to pull over drivers suspected of sending texts from behind the wheel. Offenders could be convicted of a misdemeanor punishable by up to 90 days in the county jail and a fine up to $300.

Momentum for the bill comes after two fatal texting-related accidents and a growing number of states that are enacting similar laws. At least 19 other states have already made texting behind the wheel illegal, including 12 in 2009. Fifteen states have laws similar to the one proposed in the Idaho Legislature, which give police the authority to pull over motorists suspected of texting while driving.

Some states, such as Washington, only allow officers to go after texting if the driver commits another traffic violation. Washington lawmakers are now considering strengthening their law.

Sen. John McGee, R-Caldwell, the bill's chief sponsor, says lawmakers must do something about a growing practice he considers as dangerous as driving under the influence of alcohol.

"A ban on texting is going to give our law enforcement officers the ability to proactively stop accidents," McGee told the committee.

At Thursday's hearing, supporters of a texting ban included motorcycle enthusiasts, high school students and an Idaho state police officer.

Dave Carlson, director of public and government affairs for AAA Idaho, underscored his organization's support with the example of 18-year old Kassandra Kerfoot. In December, Kerfoot died after losing control of her car while texting and crashing into oncoming traffic on a busy roadway in Meridian.

Other supporters also cited the case of 20-year-old Megan Bartley, who died last July from injuries caused by a driver who was texting when he rear-ended her vehicle.

Steve Crow, a member of the Rescue Riders, a group trained to provide emergency aid to motorcyclists, said bikers are especially vulnerable to distracted drivers. He took his case a step further, asking lawmakers to toughen the law with a ban on any kind of use of a cell phone while driving.

"I'd like you to consider that maybe this doesn't go quite far enough," Crow told lawmakers.

Existing Idaho law makes inattentive driving a misdemeanor. That statute gives police officers the authority to stop motorists suspected of texting behind the wheel, but experts say it's rarely used to crack down on drivers tapping out messages on their cell phones.

Last fall, the Canyon County Prosecutor John Bujak advised city, county and state police patrolling the county to use the statute to send a message to text-happy motorists.

Since then, his office has prosecuted at least four texting cases under the inattentive driving law.

Tim Fleming, chief of staff in the Canyon County Prosecutor's Office, said a law banning texting and driving would give police the additional legal muscle to make roadways safer for motorists, bicyclists and pedestrians.

To support his case for the ban, McGee points to a pair of university studies that showed motorists who divide their attention with texting significantly heightens the risk of traffic accidents.

University of Utah researchers published a study last year that found the practice increases the risk of accidents up to eight times. A separate study by Virginia Tech estimated the risk at 23 times.