Despite our best efforts to warn Minnesotans that it would be smart to keep the distractions at a minimum during the months-long crackdown, it seems that very few heeded the message. According to data from the distracted driving crackdown, which ran from April 1 – April 30, more than 5,300 motorists were cited for violating Minnesota’s hands-free law during April. That represents a 57 percent increase from last year’s distracted driving crackdown campaign!
“The number of citations issued is disturbing, unacceptable and extremely frustrating,” said Mike Hanson, director of the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Office of Traffic Safety. “Getting distracted behind the wheel for even a couple seconds can end with someone being seriously hurt or killed.”
It should come as no surprise that distracted driving is one of the leading causes of traffic fatalities and severe injuries in Minnesota and across the US. Between 2019 and 2023, distracted driving was a factor in 30,000 automobile crashes, which led to an average of 29 deaths and 146 life-changing injuries each year, according to the Department of Public Safety.
Minnesota has one of the stricter distracted driving laws on the books. Minnesota law prohibits motorists from:
- Holding a phone or an electronic device
- Streaming videos
- Reading or composing emails or text messages
- Accessing the internet while behind the wheel
Drivers are allowed to touch their phones once in order to answer a call, send a voice-activated text message or listen to a podcast, but multiple touches like dialing a phone number of queuing up GPS coordinates is against the law. A first offense violation will run about $125 after fees, while subsequent violations will be upwards of $300, so be sure to put the distractions away when you are driving!
Crackdown Data
According to the data, police in St. Paul handed out the most citations in the metro area during the crackdown with 952, followed by the State Patrol (450), the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Department (172), Bloomington Police (122) and Edina police (78).
In Greater Minnesota, the Minnesota State Patrol led the way with 1,045 tickets, the most of the 278 agencies that participated in the statewide crackdown.
“Put distractions away and make the roads safer for everyone,” concluded Hanson after seeing the surge in tickets this campaign.
Distracted driving citations are oftentimes hard to fight, so it’s best to just keep the phones away when you’re behind the wheel. Not only can it save you money, but it could also save a life. With the busy Memorial Day weekend on the horizon, it’s imperative that we all come together to make safe driving choices when we’re on the road. We’re here to help if you need us, but we’d much prefer everyone got to their destination without seeing those red and blue lights in their rearview mirror.
For more information about challenging a distracted driving citation, or for help with a different criminal matter, reach out to Avery and the team at Appelman Law Firm today at (952) 224-2277.
