Here's what Ohio's new distracted driver law means for Portage County drivers

Starting in April, local police officers and state troopers will be watching and waiting to pull you over if you're using a cellphone behind the wheel.

The state of Ohio recently took a step toward addressing one main cause of distracted driving, cellphone usage, when Gov. Mike DeWine signed state Senate Bill 288 into law on Jan. 3.

The bill includes several public safety measures, one of which is a wider ban on using and holding a phone while driving.

Under the new law, using cellphones and other electronic devices while driving will become a primary offense for all drivers, meaning police officers can stop any motorist if they see them using a device while driving and cite them.

Current state law makes such a violation a primary offense for juveniles but a secondary offense for adults. That means police can only stop and cite an adult driver if an officer also witnesses a primary offense, such as the vehicle going through a stop sign or speeding.

"We continually receive calls for reckless driving, many of which are associated with the careless operation of cell phones," said Aurora Police Chief Brian Byard. "Proving that someone was operating a cellphone after an accident is very time consuming and taxing on resources. Obviously, the newly created legislation will not solve the problem in its entirety. It does empower the authority to enforce."

The new law goes into effect in stages. Starting in early April, 90 days after DeWine signed the bill, police may begin stopping motorists, but only to issue warnings.

"I would imagine we're going to use that as an education period where we will be making traffic stops and educating people with the change in the laws," Kent Police Lt. Mike Lewis said.

That grace period will last six months, after which police can begin citing motorists for violations.

“Right now, too many people are willing to risk their lives while behind the wheel to get a look at their phones," DeWine said in a news release. "My hope is that this legislation will prompt a cultural shift around distracted driving that normalizes the fact that distracted driving is dangerous, irresponsible, and just as deadly as driving drunk."

Districted driving 'a much bigger problem than we even know'

According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol, there have been about 74,000 crashes statewide that were attributed to distracted driving in the last six years, with about 2,200 of them involving fatalities or serious injuries. In 2022, there were at least 31 fatal and 258 serious injury crashes involving distracted driving.

However, local law enforcement officials said the actual number of crashes caused by distracted driving is likely higher than reported

"It's a much bigger problem than we even know and I say that because it's really, really underreported," Kent's Lewis said. "In our crash investigations that we already do, there is actually a checkbox to say whether this crash was caused, you know, at least in part by some type of distracted driving. But it can be very difficult to prove, especially after the fact, and since we don't observe ourselves most of the traffic crashes that occur, we're only able to go off what we're told through the investigation as to whether or not the crash was a result of being distracted."

Streetsboro Police Lt. Richard Polivka said a reluctance by at-fault drivers in crashes to acknowledge they were distracted will throw the numbers off.

"Typically, people don't admit to us that they were using their phone, and maybe that's why they were distracted," he said. "However, my personal feeling is that happens quite frequently and that's the reason for a lot of our crashes."

More:Kent police: Crash involved two vehicles, one building, and a distracted driver, but no injuries

Area law enforcement say that while no law is perfect, the ban on cellphone use while driving will be useful.

"I think it's a big step in the right direction," Lewis said.

Sgt. Ray Santiago, spokesman for the Ohio State Highway Patrol, said the new law is "another tool that allows us to help keep our roads safe."

"This definitely gives us the opportunity to take steps and measures to be proactive in keeping folks safe, especially as it relates to distracted driving," he said.

Aurora's Byard agreed making distracted driving a primary offense "enables our officers to be more proactive during enforcement rather than reactive after a crash has already occurred."

"Our officers can stop drivers based upon observations alone, rather than driving habits alone," he said.

What are the possibly penalties for using a cellphone while driving in Ohio?

Penalties for violators under the new law will include:

• A fine of up to $150 and two points on the driver's license for the first offense. Fines and points can be avoided for a first offense by taking an approved distracted driving course.

• A fine of up to $250 and three points on the license for a second offense within two years.

• A fine of up to $500, four points on the license and a 90-day license suspension for a third offense within two years.

Fines are doubled for violations in a construction zone.

"It's hopefully going to discourage people from being on their phones, which is the ultimate goal," Lewis said. "It's deterrence. We're trying to prevent the behavior, not punish for the behavior. So if we can just prevent it, we would certainly be happy with that."

What if I need to make an emergency call or use a navigation app while driving?

The law includes some exceptions for:

• Making an emergency call to police, fire department or the hospital.

• Using a phone while stopped on the side of the road, at a red light or because of an emergency or road closure.

• Holding a phone near an ear for a call.

• Using speakerphone.

• Using navigation services as long as the driver is not typing in a destination or holding the phone.

• Using a single touch or swipe to end a call, for example.

New distracted driving law makes juvenile enforcement more practical

Polivka said enforcing the cellphone ban for juvenile drivers has been challenging because officers had to know the drivers were younger than 18 before stopping the vehicle.

He said he couldn't think of any time a Streetsboro police officer was able to stop a juvenile driver just for using a cellphone.

"It would be difficult to figure out how to both see them using the phone and go, 'Oh, that's someone that's under the age of 18,' " he said.

The new law also requires the highway patrol to compile an annual report on how many people are cited for distracted driving, including demographic information such as race.

According to the highway patrol, there are three different types of distracted driving: manual, taking one or both hands off the steering wheel; visual, the driver taking his or her eyes off the road; and cognitive, a distraction that takes the driver's mind off the road.

The highway patrol says that texting while driving is especially bad because it falls under all three types.

"The big portion of this is going to be education and raise awareness," said Santiago of the new law. "We would much rather make this issue relevant through those avenues, rather than through having to issue a citation or worse yet, make a notification to a family that someone is not coming back home."

USA TODAY Ohio Statehouse Bureau reporters Jessie Balmert and Anna Staver contributed to this story.

Reporter Jeff Saunders can be reached at jsaunders@recordpub.com.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Portage County police say they approve of new distracted driving law