Teen drivers seem to favor phone ban

KETTERING, Ohio (WDTN) - NBC's Rock Center highlighted some cases Thursday night in which texting while driving was at the core, so 2 NEWS looked at the local impact a new law in Ohio is having, especially on young drivers.

Greg Osborne was on his way to basketball practice when he stopped and spoke with 2 NEWS about texting while driving.

"Putting my life on the line or someone else's is something else. I definitely take it seriously before and after it became a law and I think it should be a law," Osborne said.

Since September Ohio has had a texting while driving law in effect, though until March we're in a grace period which means officers are to give only warnings.  The law bans Greg and others who are younger than 18 from even talking on cell phones while driving.

Ana Reckziegel is also a 17-year-old driver.  She told 2 NEWS, "Some people are like okay it's against the law, others say whatever.  I guess it just depends on the person."

Reckziegel said she doesn't check her phone while driving.  She's heard too many tragic stories about people her age getting into accidents that way.

Fellow Fairmont High School student, Cody Hess uses an app to keep himself from the temptation of checking his cell phone while driving.
 
Hess explained how it works, "It will respond to that person automatically so I don't know if I'm getting anything so you're not pushed to check it so you keep driving since you don't know what's going on." Hess said he tries to remember to use it every time he gets into his car.

Records from Kettering Municipal Court show two people have actually been fined for texting while driving. They're adults who were caught in the course of speeding as well.  Officers can't pull over a driver simply because he or she appears to be texting.  

The two ticketed never went to trial. City attorney Jim Long predicts such cases would be difficult to prosecute.

"I think the officers will do their best to enforce it when they're able to, but again being that it's a secondary violation not a primary violation and the fact that people can have the phone in their hands if they're adults I think it's going to make it tough to get a high volume of these type of cases," said Long.

18-year-old driver Riley Whisenhunt admitted to 2 NEWS she does text while driving and she knows a bunch of people who do,  Ibut she knows it's not good. She said she and her friends are trying to stop.

If they need a reminder, there's a "no texting while driving" sign to greet them as they leave school.