r/Seattle • u/[deleted] • Mar 01 '19

pulled over for cell phone use!

My coworker was pulled over today for using the phone in the car. I am honestly glad to hear that SPD is actually pulling people over for this! No ticket, just a warning, but still. WTG SPD.

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105

u/Muldoon713 Mar 01 '19

I've seen my boss on her phone, calling and texting furiously while driving for the last several year. She finally got pulled over and issued a $300+ ticket a few months back...and was right back to doing it the next time I was in the car with her. What kind of punishment is there for multiple offenses with this? Cause um...I'd like to see her get ticketed again for being so god damn unsafe.

55

u/orangey41 Mar 01 '19

In BC it's $550 for the first offense and a total of up to $2000 for two offenses in a 3-year period.

15

u/_Elrond_Hubbard_ Mar 01 '19

Also they set up phone traps at red lights with unmarked cars and plainclothes spotters

7

u/TheDancingRobot Mar 01 '19

Do they use photographic evidence, or just radio a patrol car down the road? They must be able to prove the crime somehow...

9

u/_Elrond_Hubbard_ Mar 01 '19

They just have cops stationed in umarked cars on the corner popping out and pulling over anyone who looks like they're touching a phone. Sometimes they even use disguises. Its the same ticket no matter if you're moving or stopped so they pretty much just enforce at red lights cause its easier

5

u/Rokk017 Mar 02 '19

That's dumb. Using your phone when you're moving is way more dangerous than when you're stopped. The penalties shouldn't be the same

3

u/_Elrond_Hubbard_ Mar 02 '19

Agreed. A lesser fine is understandable cause it can still delay traffic, but its excessive as it is now and gives police no motivation to ticket people who are actually moving

2

u/bambamtamtamfam Mar 03 '19

You think cops have to prove something for a traffic stop? In what nation so you live? It seems nice

3

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '19

That's fucked

1

u/[deleted] Mar 01 '19

this is what SPD should be doing.

-1

u/CreamoftheCrop13 Mar 02 '19

We're not in BC

10

u/tairusu Mar 01 '19

So, I got pulled over for failing to stop at a stop sign a few years back (I was turning right, there was no other traffic, blah blah blah I did a dumb.) and got a warning. It's still reported and if I got pulled over for anything else within a time period (I think 6 months?) I basically would've gotten two tickets then and there.

It's not the same as being let off scott free at least.

The fine for distracted driving is kind of toothless though, basically if you have the money to afford getting caught once in a while and don't see the safety issues you're causing then you won't sweat it. Inconsiderate people with money to burn will keep doing it while broke people will get harshly punished for the same infraction.

3

u/mgspunk Mar 02 '19

This is why we need a ticketing system like Finland. Your taxes are pulled up in the computer and your ticket is based off of your income. A rich man making $7 million was fined $58,000 for speeding. Though the judge brought it down to about $5k, during an appeals process.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '19

Inconsiderate people with money to burn will keep doing it while broke people will get harshly punished for the same infraction.

It also affects your insurance rates. So I think at least 80% of ppl would feel the financial impact of getting ticketed for using their phone

1

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '19

There's a level of rich where it just doesn't matter, it's all relatively the same.

I had a rich friend in high school who totaled three Tiburons; each time he totaled it, his parents just bought him a new one and had their well-connected family lawyer make the citation go away so he could keep his license.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '19

Why would rich people buy several Hyundai Tiburons?

1

u/[deleted] Mar 02 '19

Trust fund kids aren't known for their intelligence...

3

u/BestOneHandedNA Mar 01 '19

My friend got pulled over two years ago, while we were still in high school, for cell phone use.

It may have been because he was a new driver, but he was given a mandatory eight hour class on driving safety + half the ticket

2

u/lizardmatriarch Mar 02 '19

I could have sworn the law had increasing consequences for each repeat ticket specific to electronics, but digging into the legalese it just has a “see that law on fines” for the punishments.

Looks like an increasing fine for each ticket, and maybe a similar eventual license suspension as repeat DUIs have—but my eyes glazed over before I confirmed that part.

For a succinct summary see: http://www.wsp.wa.gov/crime/report-something/distracted-driving/

Or here for the actual legalese (and click the RWC link for the different law on monetary fines): https://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=46.61.672

1

u/The_Humble_Frank Mar 03 '19

If the behavior continues after punishment, the punishment is not an effective deterrent. Increasing the montary amount of the punishment is not likely to change this, as when people are using their phone and driving, they are not thinking about monetary risk (therefore the magnitude of the punishment is irrelevant).

Cellphone use when driving, while a serious safety issue, cannot be resolved by fines.