I think everyone knows it is just a matter of time before all texting and driving is outlawed across the U.S. Florida is examining a law to ban the practice as have many other states who issue traffic citations to distracted drivers. These traffic tickets can be especially costly to those drivers who make their living behind the wheel.
The federal government has proposed a ban on all text messaging by interstate truckers and bus drivers while behind the wheel. Issuing traffic tickets for commercial drivers can be a powerful punishment for men and women whose job is dependent on a clean driving record. The biggest debate on the issue has centered on how the ban would be enforced. In Florida traffic tickets for texting and driving would be a secondary violation.

A Brevard County traffic stop led to Owantus Johnson being arrested for gun charges but while in custody he sprinted out of the interview room and escaped. According to the Associated Press, Johnson was pulled over for a traffic violation and that is when deputies found a gun in his car.
Johnson tried to flee when the gun was discovered but was captured and taken in for questioning. His hands were restrained behind his back with a plastic tie but that didn’t stop the 19-year-old from running out of the interview room and escaping the Sheriff’s deputies. He is still at large and wanted on the original charges of resisting arrest without violence and being a felon in possession of a firearm.

A standardized red light camera bill cleared its first hurdle in the Florida House as it moved through a House Health Care Regulation Policy Committee. The bill is sponsored by Bradenton representative Ron Reagan and it sets up standard fees for red light runners caught by the controversial cameras. The fine would be $155. The traffic fine would be split up with $75 going to the local government, $55 to the state and $25 into a Department of Health trust fund.
The state-wide red light camera system still would be a code violation rather than a traffic ticket with points assessed to your Florida driver’s license since there would still be no witness to the violation outside of the camera. The question then comes on how enforcement of the payment will be handled. Florida traffic attorneys are waiting to watch how this plays out since at the moment these code violations cannot be challenged in a court room.

The red-light camera debate just won’t seem to go away in Hillsborough, Tampa and Bradenton. Thanks to a ruling in Aventura that called the red-light cameras illegal, the debate is raging once again on whether these devices are legal, constitutional, money makers, safety devices or a combination of all of the above. Now comes this story from Dayton, Ohio where the city has installed cameras to catch people who run red lights and is getting ready to use those same cameras to issue speeding tickets as well.
According to the Dayton Daily News nearly 50% of the city’s red light camera tickets are unpaid. Not only that but the city, according to Dayton’s finance director, has no incentive to make the people pay the citations. The police are considering booting or towing vehicles that have not paid the tickets but is that the best way to allocate the time of a law enforcement department ready facing tight budgets? If police are spending their days booting cars that were caught on tape rolling through a red light, the cameras will cost cities more than they are generating.

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According to an Associated Press story, the Department of Transportation has instituted a ban on truck and bus drivers from texting and driving while operating a commercial vehicle. The ban is effective immediately. The punishment for this traffic ticket could be up to $2,750 in criminal and civil penalties according to a D.O.T. statement.
The ban on texting and driving applies to drivers of interstate buses and trucks over 10,000 pounds. Both major industries support the ban according to the story as both the trucking industry and wireless industry gave their support to the new prohibition. According to the AP story, the government reports that drivers on average take their eyes off the road for 4.6 seconds for every 6 second text they send.

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Welcome to the red light camera controversy Tampa! City officials have decided to battle Tampa drivers who run red lights by installing the controversial red light cameras at 10 Tampa intersections according to TBO.com. If all goes according to plans, the red light cameras will be fining Tampa drivers by the end of 2010.
Hillsborough County recently installed cameras at 10 intersections as well. Those cameras began issuing fines for red light violators at the end of last year. The city of Tampa scrapped plans to install red light cameras in 1007 because, at the time, the city felt the cameras may cause more rear-end collisions and there were concerns about a private company issuing traffic citations. Well, what has changed? Budget shortfalls due to the economy seem to have made those concerns no longer a concern.

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Red light cameras have been operating in Tampa and Hillsborough County since October 30 but for the past month red light runners have only received warnings. That is no longer the case. If you are photographed running a red light at any of the six intersections in Hillsborough County you will now receive a traffic ticket for $125. The traffic citations will be mailed out starting Tuesday, December 29. In just one month’s time, there have already been 2,770 warning letters sent out according to a story on TBO.com.
These citations are not handled like a regular traffic ticket since they are violations of a county ordinance. This is the way counties get around not having an officer witness you running the red light. Because of that, no points are assessed to your Florida driver’s license due to the traffic citation. There are plenty of legal battles currently going on over the red light cameras all across Florida but for the moment, Hillsborough County drivers better be on alert at Waters Avenue, Dale Mabry, Anderson Road, Fletcher Avenue, Bruce B. Downs, Sligh Avenue and a few others.

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Banning the practice of texting and driving in Florida is not new but the few attempts that have been made to pass a law banning texting while driving have failed. That may be changing. Sensing a shift in public opinion the tide was starting to change but on Wednesday lawmakers in favor of the ban got a huge boost from Florida Governor Charlie Crist.
According to a Bradenton Herald story, Crist did everything but come out and say he wants a ban on text messaging while driving during a cabinet meeting in Tallahassee. Crist let his feelings be known to Julie Jones who is the executive director of the DHSMV. The story reports that more than a dozen bills have been filed on the matter but in the past similar bills barely were considered.
Texting and driving is not a traffic violation yet but if you have been cited for a moving violation anywhere in Florida and need qualified legal representation, please do not hesitate to contact Florida Traffic Attorney David Haenel at 1-800-FIGHT-IT (1-800-344-4848) to discuss the matter or visit our website FightYourTicket.com. Also you can contact David via email. We have lawyers all over the state of Florida who can help you fight your ticket.

Roger Yeager was found guilty of reckless driving, vehicular homicide and street racing in an accident that took the life of 83-year-old Vertis Ryan. Now he has been sentenced to 15 years in state prison according to a story on TBO.com. The Gibsonton man was racing another car when he rammed his Nissan 350Z into the Ford Taurus that Vertis Ryan and her husband William were driving. It took the jury just three hours to convict Yeager last month.
Sheriff’s investigators estimated that Yeager was driving at more than 100 M.P.H. in a 45 zone when he hit the Ryan’s car and the judge showed him on leniency in his sentence. On top of the 15 years in prison for the manslaughter, Yeager was given six years probation on the other charges and he had his driver’s license permanently revoked.
If you have been cited for a traffic violation in Tampa that led to criminal charges and need agressive legal representation, please do not hesitate to contact experienced Defense Attorney Darren Finebloom at 1-800-FIGHT-IT (1-800-344-4848) to discuss the matter or visit our website FightYourCase.com. Also you can contact Darren via email or by stopping in our new Tampa office located at 3426 W. Kennedy Blvd.

According to a story on TBO.com nearly 45,000 vehicles travel just one specific area of Fletcher Avenue each day. That is the same area were 15 pedestrians have been involved in accidents with two of those being killed. Now Hillsborough County is looking into ways to make the area safer with help from a volunteer board.
The stretch of Fletcher Avenue just west of the University of South Florida could have its speed limit dropped from 45 M.P.H. to 35 M.P.H. Other suggestions call for adding small medians, increasing bicycle lanes and using electronic signage to help pedestrians. The project could cost the city upwards of $2 million.
If you have been cited for a traffic violation in Tampa or anywhere in Hillsborough County and are in need qualified legal representation, please do not hesitate to contact experienced Traffic Defense Attorney Stephen Higgins at 1-800-FIGHT-IT (1-800-344-4848) to discuss the matter or visit our website FightYourTicket.com. Also you can contact Stephen via email or by stopping in our new Tampa office located at 3426 W. Kennedy Blvd.