Using cellphone while driving is ruled as illegal in more or less all parts of the world. The chief reason is that it makes the driver distracted and can cause an accident. In an accident back in 2009, two victims were severely injured because the driver of a truck was reading text messages while driving. The question is, should the sender of those messages be also held responsible?
David and Linde Kubert were the ones who were hit by the truck which was being driven by Kyle Best, then only 19 years old. Kuberts were on a bicycle and Best, while driving the truck and reading text messages, drove off into the wrong lane and hit the bike. While there was no casualty, Kuberts had to have part of their legs amputated because of the accident.
Best, who eventually pleaded guilty to a number of crimes, was slapped with a fine of $775 and some community service. But Kuberts are still gearing up to file for damages, given the sheer pain and loss they have gone through.
Earlier, the lawsuit involved only Best, the driver. But now, they have also added Colonna, the person who was texting Best even when he was driving. Colonna’s lawyer has filed that his client didn’t know Best was driving and had hoped that he would read the messages at a safe time. Kuberts, however, hold that Colonna knew Best was driving but kept messaging him, not caring whether or not this may distract him.
While using cellphone while driving is already illegal in many US states, it is often violated by youngsters, specifically teenagers, who tend to take calls as well as send texts while driving. If indeed Colonna is included in this current lawsuit, this can set a new precedent for such teenagers.
Source: The Daily
Courtesy: CNET
