Local lawmaker wants to alter distracted driving law in wake of police stings

As Columbus Police have turned their attention to citing distracted drivers, one local lawmaker said he is going to propose a change in the law.

Rep. John Pezold, a three-term Republican from Columbus, said he plans to introduce legislation in January that would modify state law being used in two recent distracted driving stings recently conducted by local police.

Under Georgia law, it is not illegal to talk on a cell phone, but you cannot text or email while in control of a motor vehicle. That includes if you are stopped at a traffic signal.

That’s the part of the law Pezold would like to see changed.

“It’s pretty simple,” he said Wednesday morning, “if the vehicle is not moving your should not be guilty of distracted driving.”

He has been working with House legal counsel to draft the language of the bill that would modify existing law.

Pezold’s move comes on the heels of a Columbus Police distracted driving sting along Macon Road. On Tuesday, about 15 Motor Squad officers, some posing as a roadside work crew, worked the area in front of the Columbus Public Library. In two hours, they wrote 37 distracted driving citations and 80 tickets total, ranging from license, tag and insurance violations to failure to wear a seat belt.

The first such sting was conducted on June 1 along Bradley Park Drive. There were 96 citations issued in more than two hours.

Columbus Police have said they will continue to conduct similar operations aimed at bringing more attention to distracted driving.

In both operations, citations were issued to drivers who used their mobile devices, mostly cell phones, while sitting at red lights.

“What is the difference if I adjust my rear view mirror at a red light so I that I can tell my pre-school daughter that she looks beautiful on the first day of school?” Pezold asked.

Police have contended that those using the cell phones, whether to check messages, send texts or for purposes other than to just talk, are distracted. They have pointed to cases where people using the phone have had a delayed response when the light turns green.

“If that is the case, what’s the threshold?” Pezold asked. “Is it 1.5 second, 2.5, seconds, 3.5 seconds?”

Both Columbus Police operations have resulted in intense social media criticism of the law enforcement tactics. On Tuesday, Pezold shared a link to the Ledger-Enquirer story about the Macon Road operation on his House District 133 Facebook page and said he was working on legislation to change the law. Most of the responses favored Pezold’s proposed change.

Pezold said he was not being critical of the Columbus Police for enforcing the law.

“I hope what they are doing takes a huge chunk out of the accidents and fatalities,” Pezold said.

This story was originally published August 16, 2017 at 11:21 AM with the headline "Local lawmaker wants to alter distracted driving law in wake of police stings."