Cory Galliher
Cumberland Times-News
CUMBERLAND — Maryland drivers who are pulled over for a traffic violation may find themselves facing additional charges if they were using a mobile phone while driving as a result of a bill that passed 125-14 in the House of Delegates on Friday.
The bill, which has been proposed repeatedly for years but failed to pass, will now be sent to Gov. Martin O’Malley, who is expected to sign it into law.
The bill only barely made it past the Maryland Senate on a 24-23 vote in March.
“The bottom line is it’s an excellent bill,” said Delegate Kevin Kelly. “The problem is people are so engrossed in the conversation and holding the phone that, quite frankly, their attention is directed away from the primary operation of the vehicle.”
Senate Bill 321, which carries an Oct. 1 effective date, would make talking on a mobile phone while driving a secondary offense, meaning that an offender would have to be pulled over for some other violation in order to be charged. It imposes a $40 fine on first offenders and a $100 fine for second and subsequent offenses, neither of which causes points to be assessed against a driver’s license unless the offense contributes to an accident.
The court has the option of waiving the fine for first offenders and for those who provide proof that they have acquired a method of hands-free capability for their phone.
There are exceptions for using a mobile phone while stopped at a red light and in emergency situations. Law enforcement and emergency personnel acting within the scope of official duty would also be covered by exceptions.
Kelly said that when the bill was initially introduced 12 years ago, there was a larger amount of opposition toward it. “Twelve years ago when this was first proposed, there were hundreds of people who were going to protest the bill,” said Kelly. “The phones now have a comprehensive array of functions and that is contributing dramatically to driver distraction.
“All of us have witnessed the person who doesn’t go forward when the light changes because they’re involved in their conversation, who go through an intersection without stopping, or who are driving down the side of the road and hit the rumble strips,” added Kelly.
Trooper Robert Giffin at the Maryland State Police Cumberland barrack said it’s difficult to say whether there will be problems enforcing the legislation since it hasn’t yet been signed into law. “Until the law actually gets put in the books, they’re not going to address it too much with us,” said Giffin. “It’ll depend a lot on how it’s actually written when they put it in the transportation article and so forth.”
According to the Governors Highway Safety Association, similar legislation exists in six states: California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Oregon and Washington, along with Washington, D.C. and the Virgin Islands.
“You shouldn’t have to legislate common sense,” said Kelly. “In this case, we are, because we as a society have witnessed the ever-increasing dangers associated with people who are driving and talking on a cell phone.”
A bill that passed 43-4 in the Senate and 133-2 in the House in 2009 banned writing or sending text messages while driving. It was amended in 2010 to prohibit the reading of text messages as well.
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