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Minnesota is now hands-free

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Drivers can no longer hold phone in hands while driving

On June 30, 2014, 33-year-old Andrea Boeve was enjoying a bike ride along the shoulder of Highway 270 near Steen with her two daughters, 4 and 1, in a child bike trailer.
It was around 11:30 a.m. on a Monday.
About that same time, Chris Weber was also traveling eastbound on 270 in a flatbed truck when he picked up his cell phone to complete a bank transaction.
His eyes left the road for a second … right about the same time his truck approached Andrea’s bicycle from behind.
In that fleeting moment, the girls lost their mother and Chris’s life would never be the same.
The tragedy was among 58 others that year caused by distracted driving, and each one carries a heartbreaking story of loss and lives forever changed.
In the time since then Minnesota law enforcement and legislators have been working to reduce the number of distracted driving crashes, and on Thursday, Aug. 1, the Hands-Free Cell Phone Bill was signed into law.
As the name implies, it’s unlawful for motorists to hold their phones while driving. The Minnesota Department of Public Safety released details last week about the law:
•You can place your phone anywhere in the vehicle as long as you are not holding it with your hand. If mounted on the windshield, it must be in the lower part of the windshield, not obstructing your view.
•The new law allows a driver to use their cell phone to make calls, text, listen to music or podcasts and get directions, but only by voice commands or single-touch activation without holding the phone.
•Drivers may not use their phone at any time for video calling, video live-streaming, Snapchat, gaming, looking at video or photos stored on the phone, using non-navigation apps, reading texts and scrolling or typing on the phone.
•GPS devices and other systems that can only be used for navigation are exempt from the hands-free law. In-car screens and systems are also exempt. In both cases, most of these systems lock when the vehicle is moving.
•Hand-held phone use is allowed to obtain emergency assistance, if there is an immediate threat to life and safety, or when in an authorized emergency vehicle while performing official duties.
Penalties for violating the hands-free law can include fines and fees of $120 for a first offense and $300 for the second and/or subsequent offense.
In addition, motorists with distracted driving offenses on their records face a potential for increased insurance rates.
If you injure or kill someone under the hands-free law, you can face a felony charge of criminal vehicular operation or homicide.
In other words, folks, leave your phones on the car seat, your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road.
 

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