Northwest

<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Do you have a news tip? newstips@heraldnet.com | 425.339.3400   Published: Wednesday, July 1, 2009 1,600 cell phone-driving tickets issued in first year Associated Press SEATTLE -- The law banning the use of hand-held cell phones while driving took effect a year ago in Washington. Since then, about 1,600 Washington drivers have received tickets. State Patrol spokeswoman Christina Martin says another 230 have been ticketed for texting while driving. Police told The Seattle Post-Intelligencer they could have written a lot more, but the hands-free law is a secondary offense -- meaning drivers are ticketed only when they are stopped for another violation. Still, the law may be having an effect. In 2006, police reported 1,246 drivers whose cell phone use contributed to a collision, including 27 fatal or serious collisions. Last year there were 827 cases, 13 fatal or serious. Information from: Seattle Post-Intelligencer, www.seattle-pi.com/ READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. You must be a registered user and verify your e-mail address to post comments to blogs or articles on HeraldNet. To register, click here. To read other terms and conditions, click here. Log out

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