New York, NY – New York police have started using “textalyzers” to crack down on car accidents.
If you have a hard time not responding to texts while you are driving, then we’re willing to bet that the “textalyzer” will inspire you to put the phone down pretty quickly. New York has decided to crack down on car accidents caused by texting and driving with the help of the “textalyzer,” which identifies whether or not the phone was being used before the crash. Basically, it is every phone addict’s worst nightmare.
The Lockport Journal revealed that just this past week, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo requested the Governor’s Traffic Safety Commitee to investigate this new texting technology. Specifically, to identify whether or not it would infringe upon any privacy rights.
Cuomo shared that his reason for taking such drastic measures to put texting and driving to rest is because the current texting laws are not working. The Lockport Journal reported that Cuomo cited one of the most pressing issues that pushed him to turn to the “textalyzer” for help is the fact that some drivers refuse to stop texting and driving. He points out that this not only puts themselves in danger, but puts everyone else on the road with them at risk as well.
The “textalyzer” can thank the Breathalyzer for it’s name. They both serve a similar purpose, while the latter of the two is used to identify drunk drivers, the textalyzer is used to identify texting drivers. Here’s how it works in a nutshell: plug the textalyzer into someone’s phone for about a minute, and it will tell you whether or not the driver was using their phone to email, text, playing candy crush, or using their phone in any way before a car accident.
While this new technology may be the beacon of hope Cuomo and other New York law enforcement is looking for, others are skeptical. For one, many are up in arms over the fact that this would violate people’s privacy and basic civil liberties.
A representative for the Electric Frontier Foundation, Rainey Reitman, says that if accident attorneys need to access information on a phone during prosecution, then there are search warrants for that. She has gone on the record labeling the textalyzer as “incredibly problematic and at the same time unnecessary.”
One thing is for certain, Senator Terrance Murphy is one of the textalyzers’ biggest cheerleaders. He sponsored a bill this past year that would automatically suspend your license if a driver refused to hand over their phone to a police officer. If it passes, then accident lawyers in New York will certainly have their hands full in the future.
Regardless of whether you’re team textalyzer or not, your can’t argue with the facts. According to Business Insider, between the years 2011-2015 car accidents involving cellphones were responsible for 12 deaths and 2,784 injuries in the state of New York. Not only that, but upwards of 1.2 million violations for cellphone usage while driving were handed out.
Have you been involved in a cellphone-related car accident in New York? Then USAttorneys.com has plenty of accident attorneys who can help. Based on the drastic measures taken by introducing the textalyzer to the legal system, it is safe to say that New York does not mess around when it comes to enforcing their texting and driving laws.
If the government isn’t messing around, then you shouldn’t either. Contact us today and one of our many qualified accident lawyers in New York will reach out to you for a free case evaluation.
Source: http://accident.usattorneys.com/articles/feed/
New York Turns to the ‘Textalyzer’ to Prevent Car Accidents
