On Friday a 22 year old New Brunswick man was sentenced to 3 months in jail and given a 3 year driving suspension for dangerous driving causing bodily harm.What did he do you ask?He was driving on the highway with 2 passengers aboard his car,steering with his knees while texting-he was doing 140 KPH (87 MPH).Both passengers sustained serious injuries and he didn't get a scratch..... think he got enough?

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

no way! people don't take this stuff serious enuff

In Maryland it 's against the law to talk holding a cell phone or text while driving but you can hold and use it for the GPS feature Does that make sense? How can you tell if texting or entering an address?

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The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson

For someone with a clean record more jail time probably won't accomplish anything except cost the government even more. He should be made to pay financial support to the other victims.

He is probably a decent guy who got caught doing what a lot us of do, and more, on a regular basis.

All gadgets available to the driver should be disabled once the car is in motion.

"On Friday a 22 year old New Brunswick man was sentenced to 3 months in jail and given a 3 year driving suspension for dangerous driving causing bodily harm.What did he do you ask?He was driving on the highway with 2 passengers aboard his car,steering with his knees while texting-he was doing 140 KPH (87 MPH).Both passengers sustained serious injuries and he didn't get a scratch..... think he got enough?"

Without knowing the context of the accident there's no way to answer whether "he got enough". The accident might have been unavoidable even if he was paying attention, had both hands on the wheel, and doing the speed limit -- he'd still be charged/convicted, the same way that a drunk driver gets charged after an accident even if being drunk had nothing to do with the cause of the accident.

Maybe the driver was uninjured because he was wearing his seatbelt and the passengers got hurt because they had unbuckled themselves without the driver's knowledge.

I can think of scenarios where 3 months in jail and a 3 year license suspension would be excessive rather than lenient. Of course there are scenarios where that punishment would be way too mild, where he should be locked up for years and never allowed to drive again. Without being presented with all the facts that the judge/jury heard I have no idea whether he got enough.

I failed to write in the original post that the news story stated that he lost control and I guess that implies negligence on his part.AS far as I know texting and/or using a cell phone while driving is against the law in New Brunswick as it is in just about all provinces.
I doubt if even the most accomplished stunt drivers would attempt to steer a car with their knees at almost 90 MPH in oncoming traffic.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

"I doubt if even the most accomplished stunt drivers would attempt to steer a car with their knees at almost 90 MPH in oncoming traffic."

Again, context is everything. Around here I think of a "highway" as a multi-lane limited access divided roadway designed for high speeds. We have 70, 75, and even 80mph speed limits on those roads. An officer would probably write you a ticket for doing 87 in a 70 zone but probably wouldn't bother you in a 75 or 80 zone. On roads like that I've taken both hands off the wheel to unwrap a sandwich, open a CD case, things like that, and used my knees to keep the wheel steady. It's reasonably safe if you're paying attention and planning ahead -- a long clear straightaway, no intersections, and light traffic all moving in the same direction. I'm old and I don't text, but it seems to me there are times I could read a short message, recheck the road, and then type a short reply.

If a hidden deer leaps onto the road in front of you on roads like that it often wouldn't matter if you had your hands on the wheel or on a keyboard. I can think of other scenarios on that type of road where texting and doing 87mph might not have been the cause of the accident. In cases like that, the driver might still be charged & convicted simply because he was breaking the law at the time of the accident even if he didn't cause the accident. 3 months in jail and 3 year license suspension might be harsh in those cases.

A "highway" can also refer to smaller roads with 2-way traffic and intersections with much lower speed limits. 87mph while texting is certainly reckless on those roads. And even on bigger highways there are times/places where it's unsafe. In cases like that the sentence may have been much less than he deserved.

I never take both hands off the wheel and rarely take one hand off only to turn on or off my foglights or turn on the wipers.I worked in a Rehab facility for over 30 years and I've seen first hand the damage that just a moment's inattention can cause.I've also seen some of those who were "lucky" enough to survive,without going to far into it there are fates worse than death
I live in an area that has the highest moose density in the world and you have to be extremely alert at all times and having both hands on the wheel is imperative in case you have to initiate a quick avoidance manoeuver.Several times I have had very close calls with moose,once the moose came so close to broadsiding me that I could have put down the window and touched him.
In this day and age with so many inattentive,novice and impaired drivers on the roads and so many roadside distractions it would behoove all of us to be alert,keep both hands on the wheel and drive like you would if all other drivers were blind and drunk.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

As serious as this thread is, this is about my favourite sentence ever.

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Rated "M" for meaty.

Any form of negligence while driving, that causes an accident should Cary a stiff penalty. Driving an automobile is a privilege not a wright. You obey the laws or loose your privileges, including your freedom. The same thing carries over to putting the safety and well being of others at risk. It's a crime and should be dealt with harshly.
----Danny,

i drive like i ride. my life and those around me demand it. i take few calls while driving and keep them short. i have never texted and don't plan on it unless my job requires it. call me a dinosaur but sometimes technology is just downright dangerous and makes us lazy. i'd revoke the person's liscence for life. my 2 cents.

speaking of stupidity. a guy in Roanoke Texas close to my work left his BABY in the parking lot at domino's pizza. apparently while placing the zaaa in his vehicle, he left his kid in the car seat sitting rite on the parking lot line the jack $@! made it all the way home before he noticed. I am sure he felt even worse when the police informed him domino's called the before he did

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+1000000

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



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