Sometimes innocent people are arrested for DUI. Sometimes innocent people are convicted for DUI. In my experience, I have seen situations where people are distracted while driving. If there is an accident, the first thing an officer will look for is how to make a DUI out of this. It seems to be the first conclusion that an officer may make and then focus on only that possibility. Then prosecutors jump on the band wagon and people are encouraged and forced to plead guilty to something for which they are not guilty. Here is a story that came out recently that demonstrates this very issue.
Study: Drivers On Cell Phones As Bad As Drunk Driving Last Edited: Tuesday, 29 May 2007, 4:16 PM MDT Created: Tuesday, 29 May 2007, 4:16 PM MDT
SALT LAKE CITY -- SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Researchers at the
University of Utah have found talking on a cell phone while driving could be as bad as driving drunk.
According to the recent study the levels of impairment are nearly equal.
And police say the roll of cell phones in crashes is likely underreported.
Utah Highway Patrol Trooper Preston Raban says unless a driver acknowledges using a cell phone or a witness can attest to it, it's hard to know if a cell phone contributed to a crash.
The potential for cell phone use to contribute to crashes has prompted Salt Lake City and Salt Lake County to ban employees from using cell phones in their work vehicles.
Research suggests that while drunken drivers and drivers who use cell phones exhibited different problems driving, both had trouble in overall traffic safety.
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