July 21, 2009
By CHRISTIE WITT
If you ever get pulled over for talking on your phone while driving in Syracuse, don't worry, because you have a 50% chance of getting out of it in court.
The Syracuse Police Department issues 2,000 tickets a year for using a cell phone while driving, but half of the tickets will end up getting dismissed in court. New York State is one of the few states that requires drivers to use a hands-free headset while operating a vehicle.
"I think it's a variety of causes. The courts are overloaded." According to Captain Shannon Trice of the Traffic Division of the Syracuse Police Department, the reason drivers are getting let off is because the track record of the court is terrible.
According to a transportation study, drivers using a cell phone while driving are 4 times as likely to cause a crash, and the chance they will cause a crash is equal to someone with a .08 blood-alcohol-level.
SPD
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