“If you take into consideration the amount of people that are dependent on electrical devices, I think there is a greater chance that we are more distracted now than in years prior,” Bedsole said.

The enforcement of the bill is an issue that Bedsole addressed.
“You would have to treat it like any other law,” he said. “The officer would have to develop probable cause. They would have to rely on their power of observation like with any traffic charge.”

Harpersville Police Chief David Lattimer said that distracted driving is a common occurrence in Shelby County but it’s not just in the form of texting and driving.

“(The bill is) well intended and the result will be that one facet of distracted driving will be corrected,” Lattimer said.

According to Lattimer, officers have witnessed women driving and putting on make up and men driving and reading or eating in the Harpersville area. All of which are forms of distracted driving.

“We should address it from a more generic perspective,” Lattimer said. “I applaud them for doing something but its just not enough.”

According to the way the bill is written, it would be difficult to discern between someone typing in a phone number and texting Lattimer said.

Both Bedsole and Lattimer agree that when a driver is distracted they are often times guilty of reckless driving.

“There is a reckless driving statute and distracted driving causes you to be in violation of that statute,” Bedsole said.

The state legislation session begins on Feb. 7. McClendon expects the bill to come up around the fourth or fifth week of the session.