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.
