Public Safety
A Distracted Driving Crackdown Is Coming
“The public is finally at the point where they’re fed up. They know this is a massive problem.”
Photographer: Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images
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Like many diligent public servants, Georgia state Representative Ed Setzler enjoys crowing about a nice, tidy highway project. In a Sept. 8 Facebook video, the Republican appeared to be doing just that from behind the wheel of a car. This was less than three months after the state overwhelmingly passed a ban on handheld phone use in cars—legislation that Setzler loudly opposed.
The optics weren’t good. The video (since removed) triggered a din of outrage, mostly from parents whose children were killed by distracted drivers. Setzler declined to discuss the video.