City police to crack down on distracted driving

CELINA - Police officers will begin ticketing drivers spotted using cellphones illegally come Oct. 5, Celina Police Chief Tom Wale told Celina Rotarians this week.

Ohio's new distracted driving law, aimed at curbing needless traffic injuries and deaths, took effect April 4. Officers have since been issuing warnings but will start cracking down on violators with potentially costly citations, in less than two months.

Distracted driving is a primary offense, meaning police officers can pull over a motorist if they see them breaking said law, Wale said.

Under the law, it is illegal for motorists to use or hold a cellphone or electronic device in their hand, lap or other parts of the body while driving on Ohio roads, according to a Ohio Department of Public Safety flyer provided by Wale.

In most cases, anything more than a single touch or swipe is against the law, Wale said.

Drivers under 18 are not permitted to use devices in any way, including hands-free features, the flyer states.

"What's off limits is dialing the phone, updating social media, browsing the internet, playing games, texting, video calls," Wale pointed out.

First-time offenders face up to a $150 fine and two points assessed to their license. Penalties escalate for repeat offenses, including a possible 90-day driving license suspension. Fines are doubled in work zones.

Wale said officially, distracted driving results in over 10,000 accidents annually in Ohio.

"We know the number is much higher than that. Short of getting a search warrant of someone's phone, it's hard to prove," he added.

He also believes it's one of the causes of local accidents.

There have been 14 distracted-driving accidents in Mercer County over the last year which have led to one fatality, one suspected serious injury, five suspected minor injuries and five possible injuries, according to Ohio State Highway Patrol's Distracted Driving Dashboard.

Distracted driving includes cellphone use but also encompasses eating and other distractions.

Wale said he believes cellphone use played a part in a fatal accident a few years ago involving a pickup truck and semitrailer at the intersection of Havemann Road and State Route 29.

"The gentleman from Auglaize County had a green light, coming from the Walmart area … and he was going to turn to go to St. Marys," Wale recounted. "He had the green light, phone to his ear. That side I think he probably blocked his peripheral vision. Semi ran a red light. He never saw it coming."

Officers look for evidence of distracted driving when investigating major accidents.

"If it is a serious injury or a fatal crash and we suspect the phone was … being used, we'll ask for a search warrant, and we will determine if that phone was in use during that accident (and) is a cause or factor," he said.

Drivers of all ages and backgrounds can be seen driving distracted, including a prominent local businessman, Wale said.

"I did see a local businessman, I won't say who it was. He was driving his pickup truck down the road and he had both hands on the phone," Wale said. "You usually expect that out of a teenage kid."

Wale, however, did point out a few exceptions to the new law. Drivers 18 and older can make or receive phone calls with hands-free technology such as Bluetooth or integrated systems - as long as they don't hold or support the device or manually punch letters, numbers or symbols, according to the flyer.

Drivers can hold a phone to their ear during phone conversations if the call is started or stopped with a single touch or swipe. Devices can also be used while stopped at a traffic light or parked on a road or highway during an emergency or road closure, the flyer notes.

"Even though you can do it, we really urge you not to be using your phone at all," Wale stressed.

First responders are permitted to use devices as part of their official duties and utility workers while operating utility vehicles in certain emergency or outage situations, the flyer states.