Law enforcement officials are weighing in on the dangers of texting while driving, as a trial continues in a crash allegedly involving the act that claimed the life of an Alaskan woman.
Court documents say Murphy Gross ran a red light at the intersection of Northern Lights Boulevard and A Street, broadsided a Jeep Cherokee killing 27-year-old Catherine Cope. The collision occurred Feb. 6.
Prosecutors say Gross' phone records show several texts just minutes before the crash. Gross pleaded not guilty to the charges which include manslaughter, texting while driving and driving under the influence of marijuana. Texting while driving was made illegal in a 2012 Legislature bill proposed by state Rep. Les Gara.
"What happened recently is a tragedy for everybody," Gara said. "Texting while driving can be more dangerous than drunk driving. People have to understand it's not a social thing -- it's a dangerous thing."
It's a law that state agencies, including the Alaska State Troopers, are looking to better enforce along Anchorage roads and Alaska highways.
"It's a 4,000-pound automobile traveling at highway speeds," said AST Sgt. Rick Roberts. "There are a lot of intersections; there are lots of things that can happen and change the dynamics of you getting safely from one place to another."
On Wednesday afternoon, the Alaska Peace Officers Association hosted a seminar where an expert discussed the appropriate actions for distracted drivers. Ray Faust, the association's vice president, thinks the social culture is what needs to change to keep the roads safer.
"Within a split second your whole life and somebody else's life could be dramatically affected, and by preventing (texting while driving) that would be a good thing," Faust said.
Now that texting while driving laws have been made, officials say educating the public is the next step.
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