Police: Phone use while driving draws warnings … for now

Published 9:11 pm Thursday, July 12, 2018

MOULTRIE, Ga. — Like it or not, it’s now illegal to hold your phone while driving in the state of Georgia. House Bill 673 — also known as “The Hands-Free Law” — has been in effect for almost two weeks now.

The law has garnered mix reactions from Georgians but has the law made a difference in the Moultrie-Colquitt County area?

Moultrie Police Chief Sean Ladson says it’s too early to tell but he and his officers are using this period to educate the community about the law.

“We want to treat the early stage of this law as an educating period,” said Ladson. “Which means for 90 days we’re going to educate everybody about the hands-free law including officers. The state of Georgia is really pushing for educating in the form of warning citations, so we are following suit with that.”

Police are giving citizens 90 days to become acclimated to the new law, but after that they won’t be as lenient: It will be all up to the discretion of the officer.

The Moultrie Police Department has written only four warning citations for distracted driving since the law has taken effect. Four may not seem like a huge number, but it shows officers are watching drivers more closely.

This law looks to put a dent in the staggering distracted driving numbers the state of Georgia has accumulated over the past few years.

Georgia resident and attorney John Kirbo is in full support of the law and believes it will save lives.

“I think its a great thing,” said Kirbo. “It’s like seat belts even if people don’t want to put on their seatbelt, we got the seat belt laws, and they are good for us and it keeps us safe. Much like everyone in the world would much rather be able to text and drive they can’t now because of the law and it’s best for us.”

While, others don’t share Kirbo’s sentiment, Ladson agrees with him, stating that the law is here to solve an issue and protect the people.

“I was with my wife on Veterans Parkway and she counted six people on their phones while driving and this was probably six days into the law,” said Ladson. “It’s still an issue here but, I hope can we resolve it soon.”