Lawndale Tribune AND lAwNDAle News The Weekly Newspaper of Lawndale Herald Publications - Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, Torrance & Manhattan Beach Community Newspapers Since 1911 - Circulation 30,000 - Readership 60,000 (310) 322-1830 - December 1, 2016 Community Turns Out for Tree Lighting Approximately 1,000 people helped kick off the holiday season at the City of Lawndale’s Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony at the Lawndale Civic Center Plaza on November 28. The event included the following attractions: snow sled run, trackless train rides, stage entertainment, a guest appearance from Santa Claus, and the ceremonial lighting of the Angel Tree. The Hands-Free Device Every Driver Needs By Rob McCarthy No Texting, No Selfies, No Exceptions A stricter version of California’s hands-free driving law is coming in 2017, making it illegal for a driver to hold a cell phone for any reason or to look away at a mobile device. While it’s well understood that talking or texting while driving is a no-no, smartphone features and apps like Google maps that didn’t exist when the original law was written created unanticipated loopholes. Sacramento lawmakers have been playing catchup since 2008 when cell phone use while driving was first banned. Unlike the early generations of talk-and-text phones, smartphones are handheld computers that store and play music, stream videos and Netflix shows, snap and edit pictures, follow friends on social media, and run apps with driving directions, maps and traffic reports. The technology embedded in smartphones makes it easier to find a nearby restaurant or a parking place, and harder to tune them out when drivers should be watching the road. Distracted driving is a national problem--and mobile phones, tablets and other communication devices are blamed for a spike in traffic collisions and pedestrian injuries and deaths throughout the country. Reducing the number of crashes involving vehicles, pedestrians and bicyclists is tops on state and federal government to-do lists next year. While individual responsibility and self-control by drivers are key to the success of the traffic safety campaign, an inexpensive device sold at stores and gas stations could be the difference between a ticket and a safe driving record. A cell phone can be used legally as long as it’s mounted to the windshield or dashboard and the driver swipes the screen of the phone or device, under the change in law. Getting caught holding a cell phone, a Blackberry or any messaging device after January 1 can result in a citation. A first offense of the hands-off law is $20, with an increase to $50 for repeat violations. The phone holders sell for between $6 and $30, and attach to the front windshield or hang from the air vents, according to a Google search. Department stores and online retailers list them on their websites in car accessories. Some manufacturers call their product a phone cradle. Assemblyman Bill Quirk (D-Hayward) said he wrote the bill to bring the hands-free driving law up to speed with technology. He announced the signing of his bill into law in September, and cited statistics from the California Department of Motor Vehicles and the California Highway Patrol about the high numbers of citations issued to drivers whom officers observed writing, reading or sending texts or talking on a wireless phone while driving. In 2015, the Highway Patrol issued more than 13,000 citations for violating the ban on writing, sending or reading text-based communications while driving, and 78,000 citations for using a wireless telephone while driving. “Technology has improved so rapidly, and our cell phones are more capable of much more than just calls and text messages. Smartphones have an abundance of available features that demand a driver’s attention, leading to very dangerous driving behavior. However, such activities are not clearly prohibited by law,” Quirk said. The Governor signed Quirk’s bill in September, prompting the Northern California lawmaker to say “the accidents, injuries and deaths associated with this form of distracted driving are completely preventable. … This bill will save lives.” A Fresno appellate court in 2014 ruled that using a mapping app on a smartphone did not violate the state’s ban on driving while using a cell phone. A Fresno man who was cited after an office saw him checking his phone argued successfully that the existing law was vague on the issue of using electronic maps, either on a phone or a GPS device. If a paper is okay under the law, why not an electronic one, the defendant argued. Police departments insisted, despite the appellate court decision exception to the law for Google and Apple maps, they could issue citations for distracted driving under a different section of the California vehicle code. The Fresno appeals court limited its decision to the cell phone driving law and did not expand its ruling to protect all electronic maps. Earlier this year, the Automobile Club of America (AAA) revealed that 87 percent of drivers admitted taking unnecessary risks behind the wheel, including driving while distracted. Other risk behaviors drivers said they were guilty of included driving impaired or drowsy, speeding, running red traffic lights, and not wearing a seatbelt. “There is a culture of indifference for far too many drivers when it comes to road safety,” said Peter Kissinger, President and CEO of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. Two-thirds of motorists told the AAA they had talked on a cell phone while driving in the past month, while nearly one-third said they do it regularly. Another 42 percent said they had read a text message while driving in the same time period, while 32 percent of drivers said they typed or sent a text while in the car. Those revelations prompted a Southern California AAA spokesman to characterize the attitude about phones and texting as “do as I say, not as I do” even though drivers know better. Many drivers admit to engaging in the same dangerous behaviors they criticize as unacceptable and life-threatening, said Anita Lorz Villagrana, the Community Programs & Traffic Safety manager. It’s estimated that distracted driving causes 3,000 deaths per year in the United States, and the actual number is believed to be even higher. Drivers who take their eyes off the road for more than two seconds can double their risk of being in a crash, researchers warn. Play it safe this year and give phone holders as holiday gifts to family, teens and friends. They’ll be glad, and ready for the new year because you did. • Inside This Issue Certified & Licensed Professionals.......................2 Classifieds............................3 Community Briefs...............2 Food.......................................5 Hawthorne Happenings....3 Legals............................4, 6-7 Pets........................................8 Police Reports.....................3 Santa’s Sleigh Tour............8 Sports....................................4 Weekend Forecast Friday Sunny 66˚/48˚ Saturday Sunny 68˚/50˚ Sunday Sunny 68˚/51˚
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