Facebook While Driving? Kill Someone's Grandmother and Get Charged with Negligent Homicide

[dgstorm]

Not too long ago we shared the story of a woman who impaled her butt on a pole because she was texting while diving. That story ended well as the remorseful woman has chosen to draw attention to the important issue of digitally distracted driving by admitting her mistake.

Not all stories end well though, and here's a horrific example of that. A 20-year old woman was using Facebook while driving at 85 MPH. She slammed into the back of an SUV and killed an 89-year old woman (who had eight grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren).

The driver, Abby Sletten, has now been charged with negligent homicide and faces prison time. She will also have to live with the guilt of her stupidity, and her face is now plastered across the internet for everyone to see.

It only takes a split second to destroy multiple lives, including your own. Please remember to be smart about smart-devices. The texting and Facebook can wait!

Source: ArsTechnica

 

[cr6]

So many lives impacted by one senseless act. Sad

tap'n on my S5

 

[Sydman]

Terrible, I bought one of those cd mount phone holders to keep the phone out of my hands. I still glance at it when I shouldn't though. I usually try to justify it by only doing it when there are no other cars around, but that still isn't any better.

This is the mount I use in case others are interested. They have another version that uses magnets, but that interferes with my wireless charging.

http://www.amazon.com/Mountek-nGroo...e=UTF8&qid=1410278248&sr=8-2&keywords=mountek

 

[swc2001]

I think this is Horrible.... However I also Vehemently disagree with any legislation against
driving with phones.
(I do not do that.... it is stupid.... I just dont agree with laws against it.)

 

[johnomaz]

She deserves her sentence 100%. Facebook or anything is more important than paying attention while driving. I too have a CD mount for my phone but thats so its not in a cup holder bouncing around while charging and its near my windshield for better GPS reception/data connection for music streaming. Using it in the car is just stupid. I feel for the grandma's family and even the idiot's family too, but not the idiot herself.

 

[rj160202]

It's always the cute ones.

 

[dezymond]

Two counts of stupidity (facebook and speeding) led to the death of an innocent woman. This girl deserves the harshest of punishment.

 

[mslaceyrose]

There's just no excuse for texting while driving down the road, especially when there are apps/driving modes that will read incoming texts and allow one to reply safely without touching or looking at the phone.

 

[dgstorm]

There's just no excuse for texting while driving down the road, especially when there are apps/driving modes that will read incoming texts and allow one to reply safely without touching or looking at the phone.

You hit it right on the head @mslaceyrose. Texting/Facebook just isn't that important, and technology has evolved enough that it is unnecessary to take your eyes off the road.

 

[Jeffrey]

In my book driving and texting is as bad as drinking and driving. She made a choice and a poor one. She will now have to face the consequences.

 

[cr6]

Whether it was a full on reply to a Facebook post or a quick glance to read something on their nav screen, I don't know a single person who owns a cell phone, navigation unit or whatever, that hasn't done this at one point or another over the years. If they tell you they haven't, well....I'll just leave it at that, we all know better.
The fact is, yes it's a terrible tragedy, but it doesn't take texting someone to cause an accident like this. I wiped out the whole side of my car about 15 years ago when I looked down to figure out what cd I wanted to change in my stereo. I drifted to the right while going over a bridge and wiped out the whole side of my car on the gaurdrail. That could have easily been a completely different scenario and ended much worse. It was a huge wake-up call for me. The fact is, inattentive driving can involve so many different things. Throw in ever increasing technology from smartphones or built in navigation units and that doesn't help. Even children arguing or misbehaving in the back seat can be a contributing factors that can shift our focus for just a couple of seconds, and that's all it takes.

While we understand this was a texting issue, I think the take away from this SHOULD be inattentive driving as a whole. We're all guilty of it in one form or another.

tap'n on my S5

 

[dezymond]

There's just no excuse for texting while driving down the road, especially when there are apps/driving modes that will read incoming texts and allow one to reply safely without touching or looking at the phone.

As helpful as these apps may be, I still personally find them as too much of a distraction to really be used. Not to mention if you're in a car with other people, you really think you'd want your text messages being read aloud for everyone to hear? Also another factor is music, who doesn't listen to music or some other form of entertainment when they drive? If anything, I find these apps to encourage texting while driving moreso than help prevent people from being distracted by text messages.

We have enough distractions when we drive already, our phones are just another. Minimize distractions, concentrate on the road/your surroundings, and just drive. That text message, status update, or phone call can certainly wait. If you absolutely cannot wait, at least pull over to the side of the road. I'm sure whoever is trying to reach you would rather talk to you than someone who has to tell them you ended up in the hospital or worse.

It's a shame that we've become so fixated on the devices we keep in our pockets that we prioritize a text message over keeping our eyes on the road. Year after year we're reminded that texting while driving kills more than drunk driving, how many more people have to become a statistic for people to get that through their heads?

Just my .02

 

[Jeffrey]

Well put dezy..

 

[mslaceyrose]

While I don't find telling an app to send a text, or having one read to me to be any more distracting than actually talking on the phone (hands free) in the car, or talking to a passenger, I've very rarely ever done it. Usually people get the automated "I'm driving now" message. It did come in handy when my sister was in critical condition and instant updates were crucial. It saved me from having to find a safe place to pull over to read and send texts.

I agree that there's a whole lot more than texting that causes inattentive driving. I have a bad habit of putting on lip balm every few minutes, even while I'm driving. I don't have to look in the mirror to apply it, but I have to take one hand off the wheel, and I do invariably peek in the mirror afterward. For just a second. Unfortunately, that second is all it would take...

 

[mountainbikermark]

Meism and driving can kill, no matter the meism.

Sent from my LG-D801 using Tapatalk