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800 texting drivers and counting!

cehlbeck

New member
Last night one of our local TV stations did a story about a local motor officer who has written tickets to 800 texting drivers so far this year. It's probably safe to assume most of us don't like texting drivers. Georgia's 3 year old only allows the cell phone to be used to make phone calls while on the road. Texting, email, web browsing, web apps and GPS use on phone are all illegal.

While the link is to my own blog article on the story it has the links to the TV station's story as well as the raw video of the interview the station used: http://2upriding.net/2013/09/20/thank-you-officer-myers/

Thank You Officer Myers!
 
GPS use on the phone is illegal? That one I don't understand. I travel a lot and use my cell phone navigation program instead of carrying a separate GPS.

Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk 4
 
I think the GPS part comes under the "web applications" portion, and I can honestly see why the law prohibits it. To take a excuse or "out" away. "Oh I was just using my phone's GPS and not texting." But having seen the story when it aired, they also had the video of his encounters from the GoPro camera they strapped to him along with their own video of him along with audio from the stops. I get the distinct impression that if your phone is in a mount up on your dash being used as a GPS he's not going to care. Even if you tap the screen to wake it up for the GPS he may not care. He even said that if he can't see the screen he'll try and count the taps and if it's more than 10 "you're not making a phone call". The law is aimed at a "communications device" and unless that map of the US is installed on your phone, it's communicating and using data.

On the station's web site someone argued he'd need a warrant. Imagine this scenario. He stops you, and then having probable cause, SECURES (but not searches) your phone until he goes to a magistrate and obtains a warrant to search your phone. You'd likely be free to go but your phone wouldn't as he can clearly articulate that there is a likliehood of destruction of evidence if not secured.
 
Last night one of our local TV stations did a story about a local motor officer who has written tickets to 800 texting drivers so far this year. It's probably safe to assume most of us don't like texting drivers. Georgia's 3 year old only allows the cell phone to be used to make phone calls while on the road. Texting, email, web browsing, web apps and GPS use on phone are all illegal.

While the link is to my own blog article on the story it has the links to the TV station's story as well as the raw video of the interview the station used: http://2upriding.net/2013/09/20/thank-you-officer-myers/

Thank You Officer Myers!

+1 ! :deal :thumb
 
Forget texting, we have a new enemy.

The latest IPhone upgrade allows Facetime with no Wi-Fi or internet connection. Yup, you can now Facetime while driving. :eek
 
This kinda ties in with another thread. I think officer Myers clearly demonstrates the need for a reprioritization of law enforcement focus.
 
This kinda ties in with another thread. I think officer Myers clearly demonstrates the need for a reprioritization of law enforcement focus.

Sort of.

Trust me - after 32+ years in law enforcement, I can state with firm confidence that "speed still kills."

However, original poster wishes the "texting issue" explored, so I apologize for hijacking this thread for even a moment.

As someone who was an FTO (Field Training Officer) - instructed rookie officers to survive on the streets - I preached 'situational awareness' (as I still do to my MSF Basic Riding Course students).

Your 'sig line' intriques me - care to elaborate on what it means?! :scratch
 
And this weekend I found out from someone that you no longer need Wi-Fi to use Facetime with the new Apple Operating system. I can only imagine people now video chatting while trying to drive too.

My point being that while driving or riding that should be your primary focus and not checking messages or email.
 
Since lots of people, in the United States at least, simply can't resist talking, texting, looking at the web, and other assorted uses of their phones while driving - I predict we will sooner or later and probably sooner see lockouts built into the phone so you can't use it if it is moving. All of the technology is already in the phone. It just needs to be set up.

Thus no phone on the train or the bus, and good luck if you are a passenger in a car.

It is too bad that so many people insist, "I want to, so I can". As in lots of things, their behavior will screw things up for everybody.

Since using the phone, let alone texting, has been found to be as dangerous as DUI, maybe penalties in line with a DUI including mandatory license suspension, and jail time for repeat offenses might deter all but the most stubborn or self absorbed.
 
I have a coworker that uses the GPS app on his phone all the time, but he puts the phone in a cradle, so for intents and purposes, it's acting no differently than a Garmin in its cradle would. He also has Sync, so his phone is hands free.

On my daily commute of only 14-15 miles, I probably see at least half a dozen people texting every day, most of them weaving, slowing, etc. In other words, very inattentive.
 
Sort of.

Trust me - after 32+ years in law enforcement, I can state with firm confidence that "speed still kills."

However, original poster wishes the "texting issue" explored, so I apologize for hijacking this thread for even a moment.

As someone who was an FTO (Field Training Officer) - instructed rookie officers to survive on the streets - I preached 'situational awareness' (as I still do to my MSF Basic Riding Course students).

Your 'sig line' intriques me - care to elaborate on what it means?! :scratch

I think the law enforcement industry should be more proactive and timely in their approach to public safety. The industry, yes I said industry, is a business that does have to be competitive, or should (maybe like the military that's the problem, little or no competition). If safety/trend analysts determine variable c to be catastrophically more dangerous then variable a then taylor your enforcement efforts and punitive efforts more towards variable c without neglecting variable a. This situation with text was identified 5, 10 years ago maybe and the lag in law enforcement's approach has been tragic for many families.
On the non-linear dynamic battlefields that I fought on for 22 years a one size fits all, react to the enemy, let him have the initiative approach was always easy and always fatal.
I have been a single engine rotary wing combat mission instructor pilot since 1999 which to put in perspective is like being an MSF coach on steroids. Imagine teaching an MSF course where you are on the bike with the student and you have less than one second ( literally that's what are height velocity diagram states ) for the student to make the corrective action and if he/she doesn't it will turn fatal for you and the student. Then imagine doing that three hours a day Monday through Friday for twenty or thirty years, and that's just contact phase, now strap goggles on you and the students face and do it all over again, and when it turns fatal, you get to take a road trip to DC to put your buddy in the ground. So I know a thing or two about positive habit transfer negative habit transfer, I have an undergraduate degree with a concentration in educational psychology. All that said I'm not an MSF coach and I still hold in great regard the good ones like my mentor Bill Maxwell.
Much of what I teach is muscle memory and repition similar to the BRC, however when I teach I emphasize that muscle memory, repetition is usually what gets you through a situation when you can't think clearly, when your SA is low. I guess I should say if all else fails it is a poor substitute for SA. For example when we get a low rotor rpm audio muscle memory dictates that we lower the collective and enter an autorotation profile, (that's the less than one second low inertia rotor disk thingy I was mentioning earlier) however, what if it's an NR tac failure and your engine is working fine a situationally aware person would pick this up and continue to fly and land as soon as possible, a muscle memory, non situationally aware person would autorotate possibly into trees and possibly kill two people and destroy 8 million dollars worth of government equipment. Habit transfer is so strong with some it's hard to overcome even when the situation dictates otherwise, in Iraq I was flying with one of my PIC's we go out test fire the gun and it's inop, we elect to continue mission with the rocket pod as our only usable weapon, because the .50 is our primary suppression weapon system the PC had the habit of always thumbing the .50 weapons page even though we had already determined the gun was inop, about every 30 minutes in a 6 hour flight I had to tell him to thumb his rocket page, even though he was aware the .50 was inop. Positive habit transfer, no substitute for situational awareness.
With respect: Reece.
 
Sort of.

Trust me - after 32+ years in law enforcement, I can state with firm confidence that "speed still kills."

However, original poster wishes the "texting issue" explored, so I apologize for hijacking this thread for even a moment.

As someone who was an FTO (Field Training Officer) - instructed rookie officers to survive on the streets - I preached 'situational awareness' (as I still do to my MSF Basic Riding Course students).

Your 'sig line' intriques me - care to elaborate on what it means?! :scratch

Also, sorry for the high jack, and I agree having a crash at a high rate of speed ups the chances of death.

But are suggesting going too fast kills on its' own?

I very much doubt that. I suspect accidents happen because of lack of proper training and experience, licensing with inadequate testing, and poor judgement (eg NOT driving properly for the given road and weather conditions).

Crashes, death and injuries are not a direct result of speeding, speeding is only a (way down the chain) contributory cause.

It is easy, however, to point to speeding, ticket speeding, create revenue from speeding, and and blame it for the major cause of accidents.

And leave the real causes unticketed because it is too much work for the LEO.

IMO.
 
Since lots of people, in the United States at least, simply can't resist talking, texting, looking at the web, and other assorted uses of their phones while driving - I predict we will sooner or later and probably sooner see lockouts built into the phone so you can't use it if it is moving. All of the technology is already in the phone. It just needs to be set up.

Thus no phone on the train or the bus, and good luck if you are a passenger in a car.

It is too bad that so many people insist, "I want to, so I can". As in lots of things, their behavior will screw things up for everybody.

Since using the phone, let alone texting, has been found to be as dangerous as DUI, maybe penalties in line with a DUI including mandatory license suspension, and jail time for repeat offenses might deter all but the most stubborn or self absorbed.

Agreed!!!
 
Sort of on-topic maybe, I have long been of the belief that technology drives in a way, the manner in which traffic laws are enforced. The advent of radar being accepted as reliable helped make speed enforcement a favorite because the officers had an accepted technology to back up their professional judgement. They thus avoid any pretext of he-said-she-said if the summons is disputed. This of course assumes the officer has the requisite training documented, and the testing of the apparatus is current and documented.

It strikes me now, that the widespread use of in-car cameras gives the officers that technological device to back up their judgement regarding: following too closely, agressive driving, illegal lane change, texting or phone use, etc.
 
Sort of on-topic maybe, I have long been of the belief that technology drives in a way, the manner in which traffic laws are enforced. The advent of radar being accepted as reliable helped make speed enforcement a favorite because the officers had an accepted technology to back up their professional judgement. They thus avoid any pretext of he-said-she-said if the summons is disputed. This of course assumes the officer has the requisite training documented, and the testing of the apparatus is current and documented.

It strikes me now, that the widespread use of in-car cameras gives the officers that technological device to back up their judgement regarding: following too closely, agressive driving, illegal lane change, texting or phone use, etc.

Interesting Observation Paul. You're so smart.
 
I think the law enforcement industry should be more proactive and timely in their approach to public safety. The industry, yes I said industry, is a business that does have to be competitive, or should (maybe like the military that's the problem, little or no competition). If safety/trend analysts determine variable c to be catastrophically more dangerous then variable a then taylor your enforcement efforts and punitive efforts more towards variable c without neglecting variable a. This situation with text was identified 5, 10 years ago maybe and the lag in law enforcement's approach has been tragic for many families.
On the non-linear dynamic battlefields that I fought on for 22 years a one size fits all, react to the enemy, let him have the initiative approach was always easy and always fatal.
I have been a single engine rotary wing combat mission instructor pilot since 1999 which to put in perspective is like being an MSF coach on steroids. Imagine teaching an MSF course where you are on the bike with the student and you have less than one second ( literally that's what are height velocity diagram states ) for the student to make the corrective action and if he/she doesn't it will turn fatal for you and the student. Then imagine doing that three hours a day Monday through Friday for twenty or thirty years, and that's just contact phase, now strap goggles on you and the students face and do it all over again, and when it turns fatal, you get to take a road trip to DC to put your buddy in the ground. So I know a thing or two about positive habit transfer negative habit transfer, I have an undergraduate degree with a concentration in educational psychology. All that said I'm not an MSF coach and I still hold in great regard the good ones like my mentor Bill Maxwell.
Much of what I teach is muscle memory and repition similar to the BRC, however when I teach I emphasize that muscle memory, repetition is usually what gets you through a situation when you can't think clearly, when your SA is low. I guess I should say if all else fails it is a poor substitute for SA. For example when we get a low rotor rpm audio muscle memory dictates that we lower the collective and enter an autorotation profile, (that's the less than one second low inertia rotor disk thingy I was mentioning earlier) however, what if it's an NR tac failure and your engine is working fine a situationally aware person would pick this up and continue to fly and land as soon as possible, a muscle memory, non situationally aware person would autorotate possibly into trees and possibly kill two people and destroy 8 million dollars worth of government equipment. Habit transfer is so strong with some it's hard to overcome even when the situation dictates otherwise, in Iraq I was flying with one of my PIC's we go out test fire the gun and it's inop, we elect to continue mission with the rocket pod as our only usable weapon, because the .50 is our primary suppression weapon system the PC had the habit of always thumbing the .50 weapons page even though we had already determined the gun was inop, about every 30 minutes in a 6 hour flight I had to tell him to thumb his rocket page, even though he was aware the .50 was inop. Positive habit transfer, no substitute for situational awareness.
With respect: Reece.

THANKS! :thumb
 
In this case technology is the problem, but in another it could be the solution. Cars that are self-driving are not too far off in the future. Taking distracted drivers out of the equation entirely could be a good thing.
 
My "personal soapbox", i.e., primary driving concern remains to be that many cannot "drive" in the first place-the cell phone,speed,eating,parenting,reading,primping,etc., issues are another layer on that basic issue.
Now, do I even want to ask, "what is Facetime"? No, I really don't care much but ignorant & curious...

On a private note I "sort of enjoyed", if you get my drift, the IP's clip above, as it reminded me of my 1969 Ft. Wolter,TX rides with an IP that was chain smoking his way through each days ride, having told me early on that he was going through a divorce & thus to explain his behavior...
 
Interesting Observation Paul. You're so smart.

I'm reminded of having "tried" to turn in a driver that was all over the road-right in front of us for miles(before cell use)- while we were on our a.m. commute years ago. When I got to work the guy at the state police said if they didn't see it it didn't happen. With the in car camera does that shake out any differently? Could I have taken my own pic? Thing is we have all these multitudes these days taking pics of everything in sight as they carry their cell cameras (sort of) "imbedded in their bodies"..
 
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