New Coalition Organized to Reduce Texting While Driving

By Orlando Personal Injury Attorney on July 12, 2011

Orlando personal injury attorney James O. Cunningham has been hoping that our state will finally pass substantive laws that ban texting and talking on cell phones while driving but has seen one bill after another fail due to a governor’s veto or die in committee. Florida is one of the few remaining states in the country without bans on texting and talking on cell phones while driving, but Mr. Cunningham is hopeful that a new coalition will pressure lawmakers to get a new law passed soon.

A company that makes applications that prevent drivers from talking and texting on smartphones has launched a public awareness campaign about the dangers of talking and texting while behind the wheel. Boca Raton-based PhoneGuard has some allies in their quest to reduce distracted driving accidents. One is U.S. Representative Frederica Wilson (D-Miami), and the other, pop star Justin Bieber, seems ideal for getting through to younger drivers. Younger drivers are the most likely to talk and text while driving and are the most likely to cause distracted driving auto accidents. PhoneGuard officials hope that Bieber will be able educate teens and young adults about this negligent behavior, and they are also hopeful that Congresswoman Wilson will be able to help get a bill signed into law.

“We signed one of the most well-known celebrities in the world to spread the word and help save lives,” said Scott Frohman, CEO of Media Options Group, PhoneGuard’s parent company.

Wilson has her sights set on introducing two federal bills that would make it illegal for drivers to operate mobile telecommunication devices across the country. Before being elected to Congress in 2010, Wilson served two terms as a Florida senator and introduced several bills to ban distracted driving starting in 2007. She reported that these bills don’t pass in our state because lawmakers believe they constitute personal intrusion and exemplify big government trying to control individual behavior.

Orlando personal injury lawyer James O. Cunningham invites any Florida lawmakers who believe that banning talking and texting while driving infringes on citizens’ privacy to review the long list of people who are injured and killed each year in cell phone car accidents. We have laws at the state and federal levels that control some individual behaviors because it is in the public’s interest to do so. Failing to take the matter seriously and enact tough anti-texting and talking while driving laws is no longer acceptable. If you have been injured in a cell phone car accident and need aggressive, motivated legal representation, call 888-425-2004 or 407-425-2000 today to schedule a free consultation.

James O. Cunningham

Since 1977, personal injury lawyer James Cunningham has provided effective legal advocacy to people who are injured through the negligent actions of another person or entity throughout the Central Florida area. He fights to obtain recoveries for his clients’ physical and emotional pain and suffering and pursues his clients’ personal injury cases with a commitment to excellence and impeccable preparation.