Ohio's texting while driving ban goes into effect

• Apple

  

  Warning period ends Friday March 1st.
  
  5 things to know about the law from the DDN:
  http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/lifestyles/5-things-you-should-know-before-the-texting-while-/nWbGH/
• Rotinaj

  

  So cops are now forced to guess if someone is 18 or older. I have a feeling anyone under 30 will be pulled over if caught txting.
• Apple

  

  I wonder if a cop seeing a "glow" in the front seat, like that from a cell phone or even dash board electronics is probable cause to pull you over. Better not have beer on your breath if he does!
• Fly4Fun

  

  Rotinaj;1396942 wrote:So cops are now forced to guess if someone is 18 or older. I have a feeling anyone under 30 will be pulled over if caught txting.

  Generally if a cop follows someone for more than 30 seconds they will be able to find another primary violation so the age thing isn't really a big deal.
  
  Also, the article seems confusing, but from reading the applicable law it may miss the mark on a few things.
  
  It says under the adult section:
  

  It is illegal for drivers age 18 and older to use handheld electronic wireless communications devices to send, write or read text messages while driving.

  Then under the teen section:
  

  It is illegal for those younger than age 18 to use any electronic wireless communications device while driving, sitting at a light or stuck in traffic.

  Those two quotes taken together seem to suggest that individuals over the age of 18 can send, write or read text messages while stopped at a traffic light or in a stopped traffic jam. However, the law on the books reads a bit different.
  
  From the link provided in the story (http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=129_HB_99)
  
  Under Section 4511.204(A) it gives the general rule as follows.
  

  No person shall drive a motor vehicle... on any street, highway, or property open to the public for vehicular traffic while using a handheld electronic wireless communications device to write, send or read a text-based communication

  (B) gives the exceptions, in particular (3) which is the "stopped" exception.
  

  A person using a handheld electronic wireless communciations device in that manner whose motor vehicle is in a stationary positions and who is outside a lane of travel

  To me that seems to say individuals who are 18 and over can't text at traffic lights or in stopped traffic jams as they are still in lanes of travel. I could easily be wrong though.
• dlazz

  Apple;1396956 wrote:I wonder if a cop seeing a "glow" in the front seat, like that from a cell phone or even dash board electronics is probable cause to pull you over.

  Evidently you didn't read the article YOU posted.
  
  It's a secondary offense. You have to be doing something else illegal (speeding/car accident) to be ticketed for it.
  

  Adult drivers have to commit another violation before they can be ticketed for texting

• Apple

  

  dlazz;1396972 wrote:Evidently you didn't read the article YOU posted.
  
  It's a secondary offense. You have to be doing something else illegal (speeding/car accident) to be ticketed for it.

  Reps!
• Rotinaj

  

  Fly4Fun;1396969 wrote:Generally if a cop follows someone for more than 30 seconds they will be able to find another primary violation so the age thing isn't really a big deal.

  Can't wait to get pulled over for going 36 in a 35 and then being interrogated about if I was txting or not.
• Gblock

  you have to admit to texting to get a ticket from what i was told by a lawyer friend. they cant go into your phone and look to see what you were doing.
• dlazz

  Rotinaj;1396990 wrote:Can't wait to get pulled over for going 36 in a 35 and then being interrogated about if I was txting or not.

  That seems very likely. It's like cops are out there pulling everyone over for every little thing they feel like.
  
  /sarcasm
• Rotinaj

  

  Gblock;1396993 wrote:you have to admit to texting to get a ticket from what i was told by a lawyer friend. they cant go into your phone and look to see what you were doing.

  I was just about to ask about this. Can't wait to read about the stories that are going to come from this.
• Fly4Fun

  

  dlazz;1396995 wrote:That seems very likely. It's like cops are out there pulling everyone over for every little thing they feel like.
  
  /sarcasm

  Haha, while it is true that cops generally don't pull over people for everything (not enough cops nor time to do that), if one wants to find a reason to pull you over, they can.
• ts1227

  

  Apple;1396956 wrote:I wonder if a cop seeing a "glow" in the front seat, like that from a cell phone or even dash board electronics is probable cause to pull you over. Better not have beer on your breath if he does!

  
  It's a secondary violation (like seat belts), they have to have something else to stop you for, and then if they saw the "glow" they could tack it on.
  
  It's basically unenforcable, because you can still make phone calls. Thus, saying "I was placing a call" to the officer should end the conversation because that's legal still.
• dlazz

  ts1227;1397058 wrote:It's a secondary violation (like seat belts), they have to have something else to stop you for, and then if they saw the "glow" they could tack it on.

  I already pointed it out to him. Thanks for paying attention, though. You mods do a real bang-up job.
• ts1227

  

  dlazz;1397066 wrote:I already pointed it out to him. Thanks for paying attention, though. You mods do a real bang-up job.

  
  File that one under tl;dr.
  
  Actually I just completely skipped over that post as I scanned it