Law Enforcement To Crack Down On Distracted Driving
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- In western Hennepin County, Medina police sergeant Jason Nelson is on patrol.
"You'll see people all over the road. Crossing the fog line, over the center line," Nelson said.
He is referring to the telltale signs of a distracted driver. For motorists and officers statewide, it is a growing and out of control danger. Nelson calls it "an epidemic."
Cell phones and other driver distractions are killing on average 47 people a year in Minnesota. But those distracted driving crashes also leave hundreds more with life-changing injuries.
It wasn't long before Nelson spotted the driver of a business van, fumbling with a phone.
"As I was following, you had the phone above steering wheel," Nelson said to the driver in question. "So I'm pulling you over to talk to you today."
To increase enforcement through April, the state's Department of Public Safety will cover some $438,000 in overtime costs for officers. The campaign aims to put more patrols on the roads in efforts to get more distractions out of the hands of drivers.
"We know the obvious, texting and driving, Snapchat, Twitter," West Hennepin Public Safety Chief, Gary Kroells, said. "But we also have people shaving while they are driving down the road, reading a book or looking at a newspaper, even putting on eyeliner."
Combined with tougher state laws, this extra enforcement aims to change behavior. And hopefully, officers like Nelson don't have to make that dreaded knock on the door.
"That is one of the worst parts of this job, going to someone's house, telling them that their loved one is not coming home," Nelson said. "And that's the reality of distracted driving."