What will it take in Iowa to stop distracted cell phone drivers?

Steve Lombardi

Attorney
(866) 735-1102 Ext 335

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On August 8^th 2009 16 yr. old Megan Davis died as a result of injuries suffered in a crash. She was traveling north on 180^th Avenue in a 1988 Chevy S10 when for an unknown reason she lost control struck an embankment and ended in the creek landing on the trucks top.

I am left to wonder why she lost control. What were the possible causes of her losing control of the car’s operation? One fact not reported on which would help us analyze potential reasons, would be whether a cell phone was present in the car and whether she was on the cell phone at the time she lost control of the vehicle. I’m not being critical of the Iowa State Patrol because this information would not be readily available to them at the scene or immediately following the investigation. But its information that if later collected would either point to or exclude a possible cause that is within every driver’s ability to control. From all the reading I do about accidental collisions distractions are a main cause. The amazing thing to me is that drivers seem to have an inability to recognize how their driving habits that include multiple distractions affect the rest of us. It’s so easy to know who is using the cell phone or texting while driving. We can see it from how the car swerves or weaves or fails to do what any driver paying attention would do. When they should go they remain stopped; when they should stay put or stopped they go, almost causing wrecks. Failing to yield is a major cause of collisions that include death and injury.

What will it take to introduce common sense back between the ears of the driving public? Are legislative mandates necessary or can technology save us all from those who drive distracted.