INA, Ill. (Feb. 22, 2016) - 海角视频 students packed the Theatre Thursday morning to learn all about distracted driving from Miss Illinois 2016 Crystal Davis and Illinois State Police (ISP) Trooper Christopher Watson.
Approximately 175 students attended the presentation to hear from the speakers, both of whom shared personal experiences with the issue. Both Davis and Watson spoke passionately about the topic and provided several different statistics to drive their points home.
Davis, who was involved in a car accident several years ago, addressed the audience first and focused on her experiences as well as the Miss Illinois platform Crystal Clear Driving - Eyes on the Road.
Miss Illinois Crystal Davis shared her story with RLC students to convince them to stop driving distracted. Click on the image for a larger view.
(ReAnne Palmer / RLC Public Information)
芒鈧揑f you芒鈧劉re distracted driving, or the other person is distracted driving, and you芒鈧劉re involved in a crash, it芒鈧劉s not an accident. It芒鈧劉s 100 percent preventable,芒鈧� said Davis. 芒鈧揟here is no need to be responsible for someone else芒鈧劉s life. You芒鈧劉re not a professional multi-tasker. If you look away, only for five seconds, at 55 miles per hour, you芒鈧劉ve crossed a football field. You always need to be very alert and looking ahead.芒鈧�
Davis also spoke about a close friend of hers who passed away last year because another driver, who was distracted behind the wheel, caused an accident. Watson then took the stage to speak from the law enforcement side of distracted driving, sharing times when community members would contact the ISP because of a dangerous driver.
芒鈧揟he number one, most-dangerous things we do is get in a car,芒鈧� explained Watson. 芒鈧揕ast year, on U.S. roadways, about 33,100 people died. My presentation isn芒鈧劉t about me catching you, and you shouldn芒鈧劉t think of it that way. It芒鈧劉s about being in the vehicle and making good choices. This is a huge issue in our society. It芒鈧劉s about you thinking how these decisions are going to impact your life.芒鈧�
During his presentation, Watson said an individual who is driving distracted is 23 times more likely to be involved in a crash. Commonly confused with driving under the influence, distracted drivers act as though they have a blood alcohol content of .16 - double the legal limit.
ISP Trooper Christopher Watson worked the stage last week to get the audience involved in a conversation about distracted driving. Click on the image for a larger view.
(ReAnne Palmer / RLC Public Information)
芒鈧揂re there dumb things we can do in our cars that aren芒鈧劉t against the law? Yes. But it芒鈧劉s all about a choice. Eighty-one percent of drivers admit to texting and driving. And the other 19 percent? They芒鈧劉re not telling the truth. We all do this,芒鈧� Watson said. 芒鈧揗ake good choices because it will change your life.芒鈧�
According to information from the ISP, driver inattention is a factor in more than 1 million crashes annually in North America. The result of these accidents is nearly $40 billion per year in an economic impact.
