The Law Offices of James M. Freeman, P.C.

A south Carolina jury recently awarded 7.5 million dollars to the families of two cyclists killed by a "distracted driver."  The driver was apparently talking on her cell phone when she struck the two cyclists from behind.  In pre-trial arguments the attorney for the families called driving while talking on a cell phone "the new DUI." 

Cell phone use is a common contributing factor for collisions.  Pursuant to Chicago Municipal Code section 9-76-230, drivers in Chicago are required to talk on hands-free devices, however, some say hands-free requirement is simply a step sideways.  Paul Atchley, assistant professor of psychology from the University of Kansas summed it up nicely when he said, "It's not having your hands taken away, it's having your mind taken away from the road. As people who drive a standard car -- or stick shift -- know, you can drive a car with one hand, because you have one hand on the stick. But when you start talking, it's not the actual holding onto the object that's important, it's the planning of the conversation, which takes away resources from attending to the road..."  Atchley maintains that hands-free requirements are, "really missing the point entirely because hands-free cell phones are no safer than hands-on cell phones. It's the conversation -- not touching the buttons on the keypad -- that is critical."  Research has shown that drivers talking on their cellular phones are four times more likely have a collision than if they were not talking on a cellular phone.

In Illinois, as of January 1, 2010, it is illegal to text while driving (see 625 ILCS 5/12-610.2).