@BillRM,
Quote:@firefly,
LOL tell me the last time someone had been charge with driving when sick from aa bad flu or for having a conversation with a passeger or for looking down to tune the radio or.........................
Again, you're not concerned with responsible driving, but only with whether you can legally get away with driving when impaired, or inattentive, or distracted, or physically ill, or fatigued. You think like a sociopath.
But, to answer your question--Possibly the last time someone, who was impaired or distracted by such things, ran into another car, or a pedestrian, or a cyclist, and killed a person--due to their negligent operation of a motor vehicle. When driving, you are responsible for being attentive to the road, and having your car under control at all times.
Quote:Texter found guilty of vehicular homicide
Massachusetts sets legal precedent by convicting a driver of vehicular homicide for causing a fatal distracted driving accident.
by Liane Yvkoff
June 6, 2012
You may want to think twice about responding to a text the next time you're behind the wheel -- a Massachusetts court set a precedent by convicting a teenager of vehicular homicide for texting while driving.
Today a jury found Haverhill, Mass. resident Aaron Deveau, 18, guilty of vehicular homicide for a distracted driving accident he caused last year that took the life of Donald Bowley, according to CBS Boston. The car driven by the New Hampshire father of three was struck head-on by Deveau's vehicle when the young driver swerved across the center line.
Deveau, who was 17 at the time of the accident, denied that he was texting while driving, but cell phone records showed that he responded to text messages moments before the crash. The teen deleted incriminating text messages from his phones and then told police that he hadn't been texting, but rather was distracted by homework and job-related fatigue. The jury deliberated for only three hours before convicting Deveau.
District Court Judge Stephen Abany said he was sending a message to Massachusetts drivers by sentencing Deveau to the maximum two and a half years in prison for vehicular homicide and a concurrent two years for the negligent operation of a motor vehicle, reported Boston.com. This case sets a legal precedent for charging what is typically a traffic violation punished by a fine with a criminal offense.
http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13746_7-57448359-48/texter-found-guilty-of-vehicular-homicide/
Quote:Law toughens penalties for fatal distracted driving
July 19, 2012
BY MICHAEL LINHORST
STATE HOUSE BUREAU
The Record
Drivers who kill someone while using a handheld cellphone can now be charged with vehicular homicide under a measure Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno signed into law Wednesday.
The law adds texting and talking on a cellphone to factors for reckless driving.
The law allows prosecutors to charge distracted drivers with vehicular homicide if they kill someone with an automobile.
The legislation is called the "Kulesh, Kubert and Bolis Law" in recognition of the victims of three distracted-driving crashes in New Jersey.
"If you wouldn't drink and drive, ladies and gentlemen, you shouldn't text and drive," said Guadagno, who is the acting governor while Governor Christie is out of the state campaigning for presidential hopeful Mitt Romney.
This was the third bill Guadagno has signed in recent weeks and the second bill in as many days.
Helen Kulesh, whose name appears first in the law's title, was an 89-year-old killed as she walked to an Elizabeth grocery store by a distracted driver who was using a cellphone in 2006.
Assemblywoman Annette Quijano, one of the bill's sponsors, wiped away tears as she discussed Kulesh's death.
"Something as simple as going to the grocery store shouldn't be a death sentence," said Quijano, D-Union.
Seriously injured
David and Linda Kubert were seriously injured in 2009 in Mine Hill when a distracted driver hit them as they were riding a motorcycle together. The collision was so violent that each of them lost a leg, according to news reports.
Neither of the Kuberts could attend Wednesday's signing ceremony, Guadagno said, because they had to be in Florida for specialized treatment.
Toni Donato-Bolis was killed June 1, 2011, in Gloucester County by a driver who was allegedly texting, Guadagno said. Donato-Bolis was nine months pregnant, and her unborn son was also killed in the crash.
"If you drink and drive, you're reckless, and a prosecutor can charge you with that. Now if you text and drive, you can be charged with reckless driving," Guadagno said.
The new law does not change the penalties for reckless driving, but it adds illegal cellphone use – texting or talking on a phone that is not hands-free — to the list of factors that can indicate reckless driving.
If a reckless driver kills someone, prosecutors can bring vehicular homicide charges. That crime is punishable by imprisonment of five to 10 years, a fine of up to $150,000, or both. Similarly, a reckless driver who injures someone can be brought up on assault by automobile charges.
Assault by auto that results in serious injury is punishable by up to 18 months imprisonment, a fine of up to $10,000, or both.
Guadagno and some of the bill's other sponsors emphasized that texting while driving is dangerous.
"No phone call, no text is important enough to risk the life of another person," said Assemblywoman Gabriela Mosquera, D-Camden.
http://www.northjersey.com/news/162995086_Law_toughens_penalties_for_fatal_distracted_driving.html?page=all
Quote:
A Connecticut Teen Is Charged With Distracted Driving and Negligent Homicide
Posted: 7.9.12
Brianna McEwan is facing legal charges of negligent homicide, driving in the wrong lane and using a cell phone while driving under the age of 18. The teen recently plead not guilty of the crime during her appearance at the Norwalk Superior Court.
The New Canaan High School student is indicted for causing the death of 44-year-old Kenneth Dorsey, who was jogging along Norwalk’s New Canaan Avenue when a vehicle struck him. Dorsey died of his injuries at the Norwalk Hospital.
http://www.distracteddrivinghelp.com/news/connecticut-teen-charged-distracted-driving-and-negligent-homicide
Quote:Texting while driving may be the most prevalent way drivers are distracted from the road, but it is not the only way. Distracted driving also includes: talking on a cell phone, eating, changing songs or radio stations, applying makeup, checking email, reading, or anything that forces the driver to shift her attention back and forth between it and the road.
There are three main types of distracted driving:
•Visual: or anything that takes the driver’s eyes off the road;
•Manual: or anything that forces a driver’s hands off the wheel; and
•Cognitive: or anything that takes a driver’s mind off of driving.
http://www.ccc-law.com/maryland-texting-while-driving-vehicular-manslaughter/
Quote:Vehicular Homicide: A Defendant Is Likely To Go To Jail If Someone Dies As a Result Of Driving Carelessly
Although it’s known by various names (vehicular homicide, homicide by vehicle, vehicular manslaughter, etc.) the charge is typically that the defendant negligently operated a motor vehicle which resulted in someone’s death....
The greatest number of vehicular homicide charges are brought because the driver was intoxicated or distracted. These two types of offenses caused the greatest number of driver-related fatalities. In 2009, for example, drunken driving caused over 12,000 traffic fatalities while distracted driving is believed to have caused almost 5,500 deaths the same year, according to the National Highway Safety Traffic Administration. Many states have special vehicular homicide codes that enhance penalties if the driver was intoxicated.
http://www.drivinglaws.org/resources/jail-driving-offense-dui-vehicular.htm
To repeat, when driving, you are responsible for being attentive to the road, and having your car under control at all times. And if fatigue, or illness, or emotional upset, or fiddling with the car radio, or eating, or drinking coffee, or talking on a cell phone, or anything else, keeps you from being able to do those things, you shouldn't be behind the wheel.
You are simply an irresponsible person who promotes irreponsible driving. But, I doubt that comes as a surprise to anyone here.
