Chicago DUI lawyer says it's official: no texting while driving in Illinois

This Chicago DUI lawyer has commented here, here, and here on texting and driving. In recent weeks there have been studies released saying that texting while driving was more dangerous than a Chicago DUI. Now Governor Quinn has signed a bill into law that bans texting while driving in Illinois.

August 7, Chicago, Il

Gloria Wilhelm said Thursday that a state law banning text-messaging while driving comes too late for her youngest son, Matt, who died after he was hit by a car driven by a woman downloading ring tones to her cell phone.

The statewide law takes effect Jan. 1. The City of Chicago banned texting while driving last year.

Other questions remained unanswered, including how police can or will enforce the law when it allows for texting while a car is in park or when a motorist is reporting an accident.

Quinn, who also signed a bill banning talking on cell phones in construction zones and school-safety zones, said the discussion will continue in September when U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood convenes a summit to study the increasingly alarming issue of distracted driving.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 25 percent to 30 percent of reported crashes -- 1.2 million a year -- involve drivers not paying attention.

While the anti-texting measure was overwhelmingly approved by the Legislature, it did hit some speed bumps on the way to Quinn's signature. Concerns about privacy, enforcement and racial profiling were raised in debate in the House and Senate.

Sen. Kwame Raoul (D-Chicago), who voted against the legislation, said Thursday he agrees with the need to persuade motorists not to text or surf the Internet while driving. But he questions whether this law is the way to do it.

"If I believed this new law was going to curb texting while driving, I'd be gung ho for it," Raoul said. "But I think what we're doing is we're passing a law that will have limited, if any, deterrent effect. It will be difficult to enforce. How an officer from his or her vehicle determines that a driver is texting is beyond me."

Raoul also said he is troubled by the idea that a police officer, while looking at a motorist's cell phone to determine if he or she had been texting while driving, could be invading privacy by examining text messages that were sent or received before the driver got behind the wheel.

I still believe that you can't legislate common sense, but let's hope the law has its intended effect on making our roads safer.