What laws did the Georgia State Assembly pass in their new Hands-Free Device Act that helped State Law Enforcement to Identify and cite distracted drivers?

The General Assembly in Georgia passed a bill that would make "it against the law to text and drive as well as manipulate the phone to check social media accounts or send and check emails. That law applies when a motorist is stopped at a red light."  "The law, as written now, requires police to make a distinction between using the phone and texting or scrolling on social media sites."  "If you are holding the device, you are violating the law (Williams, 2018)," plain and simple. 

Georgia Hands Free Device Act

Effective July 1, 2018, pursuant to 40-6-241(c), all drivers operating a motor vehicle on any highway of this state are prohibited from:

·         Holding or supporting, with any part of the body, a wireless telecommunications device or stand-alone electronic device.

·         Writing, sending or reading any text-based communication, including a text message, instant message, e-mail or internet data.

·         Watching, recording, or broadcasting a video or movie (Georgia, 2018).

  

Recent Supreme Court decisions on law enforcement using or retrieving cellphone data while stopping a motorist for distracted driving says that they need a warrant to retrieve the data from the phone.  But because of "undercover spotters," there might be an exception to the rule of retrieval as "undercover spotters who look for offenders detail of violation and radio motorcycle officers who execute stops (Williams, 2018);" if the phone call, text message, app usage, etc. are recent, so they can use this information in court.  As a result, "a conviction for distracted driving in Columbus Recorder's Court carries a fine and court costs of $200.63.  The Senate version of the distracted driving bill, which is called "The Hands Free Georgia Act," would set the fines at $50 for the first offense, $100 for the second offense and $150 for the third time a motorist is convicted. The House version set a flat fine of $300 per violation (Williams, 2018)."  "And that is what Columbus police have been doing since June 1 when it did its first of four distracted driving undercover details. They wrote 389 citations for a number of traffic violations during those operations, the most recent of which was Wednesday morning at Bradley Park Drive and Veterans Parkway at 13th Street (Williams, 2018)."   The Hands Free Device Act focuses on manipulation of devices like the cellphone, but not other forms of distraction that motorist is guilty of on a daily basis. Other forms of distracted driving include Cognitive Distractions like, Highway Hypnosis or Velocitation.  Cognitive Distractions cause the driver’s mind to not be focused on the task of driving.  Visual Distractions, like a naked man or woman in public, a lion in the middle of the street, a person being murdered or beat by another person, etc.;  and third is Manual Distractions.  “Manual distraction is when the driver takes one or both hands off the wheel for any reason. Some common examples include eating and drinking in the car, adjusting the GPS, or trying to get something from a purse, wallet, or briefcase.  And the last here is what the Hands Free Device Act focuses.  The length of porosity in these laws will be grounded-out and re-worked in future court decisions as violations of the Hands Free Device Act are challenged. 

Alternatives to Manipulating the Phone with hands or body while driving

Jupiter Jack came out in 2009 when laws for texting while driving became a problem.  The Hands Free Device Act make old texting and driving laws look “overly vague” and do not make a relation to warrantless searches of cellphone data upon being detained for violation of distracted driving.  Alternatives to holding the phone without hands or any part of  the body while driving can be solved through voice commands and other hands-free devices, like Jupiter Jack.  Other devices include Bluetooth headsets, Hands-Free Car Kits (HFCK), and Personal Navigation Devices (PND).  Most, if not all, are already in use by everyday commuters, they just are not ‘household items,' and this is what the Hands Free Device Act plans on making them.  Hands Free apps can be used by parents or themselves to "monitor teens’ cell phone use while driving by using apps like Drive Safe Mode and Lifesaver. Other apps like AT&T's DriveMode blocks notifications and can send automatic replies to incoming texts.  The Mojo app is another option. Mojo tracks your driving and rewards you for going long periods of time without using your phone (Lewis, 2015)."   "Using voice commands to send texts would be allowed under HB 673.  Apps like Drivesafe.ly read text messages aloud, so you don't have to check them manually.  Many cars also have built-in Bluetooth capabilities that allow drivers to play music on their phones and make phone calls hands-free.  You can also connect your phone to Bluetooth devices that can be plugged into your car's cigarette lighter. Many of these devices are sold online (Lewis, 2015)."

Talking on the phone as his load shifted and his truck overturned!

About 6-7 years ago, as I walked down 5th Avenue, past the Greyhound bus station and Ma Rainey's house, I saw a tractor-trailer carrying lumber, which had overturned on Veterans Parkway and 8th Street here in Columbus, Georgia.  From my understanding, the driver was talking on the phone, with a phone in hand; and as he turned the corner, his load shifted and his truck overturned.   "In 2012, a federal law went into effect banning the use of handheld cellphones while operating a commercial truck. The law includes interstate truck drivers and bus drivers as well as drivers who transport "placardable quantities of hazardous materials" (Queener, 2014)." The paragraph in Distracted Driving still a problem for Truckers brought to mind the memory of this incident, as well as a video I saw on Youtube of two semis colliding on the highway at full speed as they skewed the same curve of road.  "Reading Maps or GPS devices are common, since truckers often travel in areas that they are unfamiliar with, it is a prevalent practice for them to take their eyes off of the road to look at directions (Queener, 2014)."https://queenerlaw.com/blog/distracted-driving-still-problem-truckers/ 

"Nobody should text and drive, but perhaps adults just might, at least most of the time, have the capacity to act like adults without the government dictating their every move, down to whether or not they can take a sip of coffee or change the song playing on their stereo (Morefield, 2017)." Lastly, "even though devices, voice commands, and notification-blocking apps may help curb dangerous driving habits, they don't eliminate all risks (Lewis, 2015)."  Hands Free doesn't mean that it is 100% accident safe.

References

Georgia. (2018, 06 06). Press Releases (HB673). Retrieved from Georgia: https://dds.georgia.gov/press-releases/2018-06-06/hands-free-georgia-law-hb673

Lewis, K. (2015, April 4). FM WABE. Retrieved from https://www.wabe.org/devices-apps-driving-hands-free-georgia/

Morefield, S. (2017, April 6). Politics and Policy. Retrieved from National Review: https://www.nationalreview.com/2017/04/distracted-driving-bans-slippery-slope/

Queener, L. O. (2014). Queener Law firm. Retrieved from Queener Law.com: https://queenerlaw.com/blog/distracted-driving-still-problem-truckers/

Williams, C. (2018, March 28). Proposed Georgia law would take cellphone out of your hands while driving. Columbus Ledger-Enquirer. Retrieved from https://www.ledger-enquirer.com/news/local/crime/article207177889.html

Columbus Consolidated Government!

 Columbus Consolidated Government views African-American males, like me, as young thugs who are inexperienced in life.  In short, we do not know how to act as a Plaintiff, only as the Defendant.  At 41 years-of-age, shocking the universal sense of justice is something that I thought I would never see until I filed a small claims case in the Muscogee County Municipal Court against a local grocer. 



One particular day in August, after I had purchased about eight or 10 cases of sodas, I proceeded to push the grocery cart off the premises to my residence two blocks around the corner.  One of the female store clerks had already told the operators of Cash and Carry store, not to allow me to use the cart to take my sodas home.  In spite of all the fuss, they usually did not make a fuss about us pushing the buggy off the premises, as long as we brought them back.  I pleaded with the operator who had come out the store telling me that I could not take the cart off the premises, to take all the cases of soda home at once; nor could I leave them on the sidewalk, for fear that someone might steal them.  Despite the unimportance of a shopping cart, that I knew I was wrong for taking off the premises after the operator specifically told me could not.  Under the circumstances of more than I could carry sodas, I proceeded to push the cart to my residence, unloaded my goods, and immediately took the shopping cart back to the store.  I expected to be greeted by the police when I brought the shopping cart back, but I walked back home, locked the door, sold one soda, and set down to watch television.  As soon as I got comfortable, the police knocked on my door and arrested me for criminal trespassing. Feeling belittled by the incident of the store owner and clerk, who were trying to humiliate me, by forcing me to carry all those sodas home by hand; Furious, I saw an opportunity to ‘legally’ throw the first punch, and make some money.


On August 15, 2013, I filed a small claim in the Muscogee County Municipal Court.  Case number:  MC-2013-CV-8726.
With dress slacks, dress shirt, and tie, the respondents’ lawyer and I were the only two in the courtroom.  The bailiff spoke to the judge concerning me, and his mentioning me added fuel to my already furious disposition.  I knew I could not allow the good pressure that had always provoked me to do something physical or verbally curse people, to do something stupid in my time and what I must do.  So, I channeled my energies, focusing on how I would present my evidence; starting with my opening statement.  The Judge, Lawyer, Clerks, and Respondents, all thought what I was doing was a joke.  Nevertheless, to me, it was a chance to dispel or change the view that Columbus Consolidated Government has of me, Mosi Wells.  When the Respondents arrived, and things began to proceed, the Judge saw that I would not crack under the pressure of a local Defense Attorney Stacey Jackson.  He came with his final and third tactic of pushing the procedural limits on a matter.  The Solicitor General office would not close out the matter of criminal trespassing until after January 1, 2014, even though a judge had already ruled on the matter. Therefore, the small claims Judge would not hear my case until the Solicitor General’s office closed the matter of the criminal trespassing.  Given all these facts, the Judge had appointed me a lawyer that I never knew I had and dismissed the case without prejudice due to lack of evidence.

I am not a lawyer, not even a jailhouse lawyer, and I have dealt with the system since I was 14.  Like little Mac in Mike Tyson’s Punch Out, Columbus Consolidated Government is not the enemy, but they are my opponent, a much larger opponent that is not afraid of me, Mosi Wells.  But it troubles them when my ability to demonstrate evidence in a courtroom defies their liberal views of young African-American men like myself if I am not in that courtroom for drugs, murder, or robbery.

The True Aim of the Criminal Justice System: Rehabilitating the Criminal

Working class people are more prone to violence because of continuous acts of workplace bullying, social bullying, and domestic bullying, causing violence to spill over to jobs like policing, colleges, and social events; where these acts of intimidation are brought to a head in the form of some violent outburst or action.  “In the 1980s the manifest functions of government were to maintain order in society, but its distinct function produced a hard lesson learned by the individual who broke the law.  James Flynn, “observed in the 80s that IQ scores had consistently increased in the past decades”… “3 IQ points per decade and thought that intelligence itself had not increased, but abstract problem-solving ability had, making people more intellectually capable”… “Factors that may have played a role are computers, long-schooling, media stimulation, better health and nutrition, and more parental attention.”  Consequently, from 1991 to 1999, according to A-infos website there was one incident of unjustified police brutality every year for nine years.  Even closer to 2015 you have similar events:  Timothy Russell and Melissa Williams, who were unarmed and shot more than 137 times by Cleveland Police; South Carolina Officer Micheal Slager, who shot and killed unarmed Walter Scott.  This type of injustice has sparked the Justice or Else movement that focused on the injustice of police who are committing murder and felony assault, and falsifying reports. 

The Cleveland abduction showed just how monstrous working class people have become to enrich their lives socially and personally.  When Ariel Castro abducted and tortured those girls for 10 years in a residential home in Cleveland right under the noses of the surrounding neighbors in the community, this showed the lengths everyday working class citizens will go to attain and maintain a certain status quo in the community they live.  Ariel Castro was not considered to be mentally disturbed until it was discovered what he had done; neither were the other shooters who committed the mass killings mentioned in this paper. Ariel Castro is not alone in this crime of kidnap and sensory deprivation; cases in Georgia, Tennessee, Oklahoma, and many other states as you read this passage.  They all fitted a profile; they were ordinary working class people who were not ill-spoken of until these atrocities were discovered to be committed by them.    

“According to data compiled by Mother Jones magazine, which looked at mass shootings in the United States since 1982, white people -- almost exclusively white men -- committed some 64% of the shootings.    "What made Dylann Roof do what he did? You know, I mean, that's the question, isn't it? I don't know," Jeffrey Swanson, professor in psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Duke University, told CNN's Don Lemon.  "There are pieces of the puzzle, and you put them all on the jigsaw board, and you're still going to have a big hole there. What I do know is that violent behavior -- whether it's serious violence or minor violence in populations -- is never just one thing. It's not a one thing problem. It's going to be an accumulation of things, kind of a whole cocktail of factors," he said.

Mass shootings date back as far as 1984 that have its origins in “Workplace Violence.”  The shooters in the majority of recent mass shootings all had no criminal record, college students, working class citizens who collapsed under the “cocktail of factors” from home, work, and school.  The shooters felt that they had been the target of “acts or verbal comments, negative physical contact, repeated incidents or patterns, asserted power through aggression, the object of a person’s need to control someone, a set of acts of commission or omission, undermine legitimate business interests, escalates to involve others, and requires consequences for the targeted.”  These are the characteristics of workplace bullying; elements that spawned most of the mass shootings in recent times.  While race, gender, and mental health all played a factor in the execution of these crimes, the commonality here is that all the shooters felt that they had been unjustly done.  “The fugitive Edward Snowden, convicted spy Chelsea Manning, and mass murderer Aaron Alexis all had one thing in common, U.S. government security clearances which they turned into weapons.” This quote by Scott Pelley is a perfect example of seeking justice as an encouragement.  “Some believe that Snowden and Manning were right to expose what they saw as government abuses like the NSA's domestic surveillance program, but few believe that all of America's secrets should be not at risk to spies, criminals or the mentally ill.” 

Since the 1980s, rehabilitating the criminal has been a priority of the criminal justice system.  Crime has become an integral part of hip-hop culture, so connected, that the style of dress, slang, and habits of the double failure have made their way to the forefront of several minority cultures as fashionable trends.  With the popularity of the life of the double failure as a popular trend, now there is what I term the “triple failure,” because the standard for success has become tough in the life of the double failure, unlike it once was 30 – 40 years ago. Criminals who have committed the crimes of murder, robbery, burglary, drug selling, and assault all have found themselves on the inside faced with wanting to get out of prison and stay out.  A perfect example of this philosophy is Shari L. Thomas.

 “Shari L. Thomas went to prison more than 25 years ago for killing the man who she said had abused her as a child.  She used her time there to remake herself, becoming the first woman in Virginia to obtain a college degree behind bars. [Shari] earned a master’s degree in biotechnology after her release. She has kept her record clean since, managing research laboratories for major hospitals and pharmaceutical companies.  And yet even now, her criminal record has the power to reach through time, upending her life.” 

This philosophy only works when the individual wants it to work, can keep pace in this fast-moving, high-tech advanced society, and the community is proponents of the person and their efforts. 

The majority of mass shootings start out as some form of workplace violence; where a disgruntled employee or student with no known criminal history or known mental history has busted under the pressures of work, home, and their social life.   My personal experience has led me to know that about 90% of the present day workforce is composed of ex-convicts, probationers, and parolees.  Most are still working because they are tired of going back and forth to prison, being on probation or parole, and want something different than the “thug life’ that led them to jail.  “Al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri called on Muslim men to carry out lone-wolf attacks in Western countries, according to a video circulating on the intern[e]t in recent days, suggesting Muslim youth follow the example set by the Tsarnaev brothers.  When terrorist goes from attacking corporations and organizations literally to your front door, then we must take a look at the rehabilitation of the criminal, and where this is truly leading.  Full of drugs, guns, murder, and a lot of times, no promise for tomorrow for young African-American children who are caught up in this culture of dope houses and gangs, this is an upside to the downside of African-American culture.