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NEW JERSEY ATTORNEY GENERAL REPORTS SURGE IN DISTRACTED DRIVING OVER LAST DECADE

By Alexandra Hill, WBGO News
April 14, 2014

The New Jersey attorney general’s office reports that over the last decade nearly one a half million crashes were the result of drivers not paying attention, and warns a cracking down is coming.

The data shows nearly half of all accidents between 2004 and 2013 can be attributed to people who are not focusing on the road while driving. Zach Hosseini, spokesman for the attorney general’s office, calls it the distracted driving decade, and says in most cases it is smart phones that are to blame.

“More than 1600 people have been killed in crashes where driver inattention was a major contributing factor, so what we wanted to do is really get the message out there to people that distracted driving to us it’s an epidemic.”

Hosseini says law enforcement agencies statewide will be increasing checkpoints and patrols, and adds that as of July 1st fines will increase to as much as $400 for the first offense.

© 2014 WBGO News