This week, a teenager in Massachusetts was sentenced to one year in jail for causing a fatal car accident while texting. The accident took the life of one man and seriously injured the man's girlfriend. Using cell phone records, prosecutors demonstrated that the teen sent text messages within a minute of the fatal crash. A jury convicted the teen of motor vehicle homicide and negligent operation while texting.
As a car and truck accident lawyer, I have seen just how dangerous distracted driving can be, and texting is one of the most dangerous forms of distracted driving. As anyone who has sent a text message knows, to type and read text messages, a person needs to look directly at his or her phone. Thus, when someone is texting and driving, his or her eyes are off the road for at the very least a brief moment. As this case shows, taking your eyes off the road, even if only for a split second, can lead to a devastating accident. I encourage all drivers to avoid dangerous distractions like texting for their own safety and the safety of all others sharing the road.