Florida Personal Injury Attorney Blog

Where do you stand on this issue? It seems wherever you go, people are on their cell phone even while driving their cars. This has caused many to wonder whether cell phone use should be permitted while operating a motor vehicle. There are three sides to this issue:
1. A ban on cell phone use by drivers due to the fact that many Florida car accidents happen when a driver is distracted while talking on the phone.
2. No ban on cell phone use due to the opinion that it is possible to drive safely while speaking on a phone and no one should dictate that drivers should not be able to talk and drive.
3. A compromise – allow cell phone use only with a hands-free headset or ear piece.

Earlier this year bills were introduced by Florida Legislators which were aimed at reducing cell phone calls in moving cars, none were passed. One bill was aimed at banning all Florida drivers from sending a call, texting, dialing, listening or speaking on a wireless device without a hands-free device. Another would have banned teen drivers from driving and talking on hand-held devices.

We have found in our practice that there are more and more accidents that are caused by drivers who are on there cell phones and there are statistics that do seem to suggest that legislation is needed. The leading cause of fatalities for teenagers and drivers in their 20’s and 30’s reported by the CDC are car accidents. In addition, it is well known that car accidents also cause many serious injuries to drivers and passengers. The following studies have found a link between fatalities and injuries in vehicular accidents and cell phone use by the drivers:
1. In 2002, the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis study, found that about 2,600 fatalities each year are caused by drivers who are distracted by cell phones at the time of an accident.
2. The California Highway Patrol also conducted their own research in 2001 and found that during a nine month period 4,699 car crashes were linked to drivers distracted by their cell phones.
3. Another study conducted by the University of Utah found that drivers using cell phones had the same response times as drunk drivers. The drivers using cell phones, the research revealed, were 9% slower to brake and 19% slower to return to normal driving speeds.

It’s almost impossible to believe that our Florida legislature decided five years ago to make it illegal for local jurisdictions to ban cell phones. The studies listed and data from our own Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles reveal that in 2006, 26 car accident fatalities and 1,364 car accident injuries in Florida involved driver distractions. We all need to let our legislature know that the citizens of Florida want their streets and highways to be safer and legislation that limits the use of cell phones while operating a motor vehicle will help to accomplish that goal. This is not about convenience or taking away our rights, it is about saving lives that are needlessly cut short as a result of drivers who are unnecessarily distracted while operating a vehicle.

Posted by Arleen Lazarus | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: AUTO ACCIDENTS , CELL PHONE USE

Bookmark:

On July 23, 2008, the head of a prominent cancer research institute issued a stunning warning to his faculty and staff:

Limit Cell Phone Use because of the possible risk of cancer.

The director of the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, Dr. Ronald B. Herberman, is convinced that while the date is still equivocal and incomplete, there is enough evidence of a possible link between cell phone use and cancer.

Dr. Herberman has concluded that it often takes too long to get answers from science and rather than wait for a definitive study to come out, it is better to err on the side of caution, especially when it comes to children. Studies have proven that children’s developing brains are more susceptible to electromagnetic waves, which penetrate deeper into a child’s brain. Because of this, Dr. Herberman has recommended to parents that children should use cell phones only for emergencies.

He also recommends that adults should keep the phone away from their head and use the speakerphone or a wireless headset. We have been recommending to our clients that they purchase devices that limit the radiation emitted trough cell phones. These devices are often the size of a penny, fit over the cell phone ear piece and reduce radiation by as much as 97 percent. There are several companies that sell these devices and one that we recommend that you go to is www.waveshield.com. (No one associated with our law firm has any relationship, financial or otherwise with anyone associated with these companies that sell these devices.)

This article will not discuss the number of studies that have found no link between cell phone use and cancer. While we acknowledge that these studies exist, some of them are not recent and they appear to run contrary to an international trend over the last several years where cancer researchers in several foreign nations have also found a link between cell phone use and cancer. In fact, many of these countries have already issued warnings similar to Dr. Herberman.

The point of this latest warning and this article is it is the first credible finding by a renowned American Cancer Institute and it merely concludes that while the data is inconclusive, it is better to err on the side of caution and use all safety remedies at your disposal. No one, in their right mind, who does not have an agenda, can argue with the logic in this warning. We are not, and I repeat, NOT attempting to procure litigation cases against the Cell Phone Industry and their various companies. We are merely using this opportunity to educate our friends and neighbors and advise them to exercise caution, especially when it comes to their beautiful children.

Posted by Gary T. Lazarus | Permalink | Email This Post

Posted In: CELL PHONE USE

Bookmark: