Alcohol and drugs are not the only items that impairs driver’s judgment or attention. There are now more and more stories about people being injured in car accidents as a result of cell phone use or texting.  According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, cell phone use was the cause of 18% of fatalities in accidents involving distracted drivers in 2009. For these crashes, the police reported that the cell phone was either in use at the time of the crash or was in the presence of the driver at the time of the crash.
Because of these incidents, groups have pushed for the passage of laws that would ban or penalize drivers using cell phones, especially texting, while driving.

The Nevada legislature have considered such laws. Current bills being considered by the Nevada legislature include AB 151, which would ban text messaging and the use of handheld phone and impose fines. If AB 151 is passed as written, it would also impose a prison term of 1-6 years with fines of $2,000 to $5,000 if “substantial body harm” results from the use of a handheld cell phone or from texting while driving. Testimony was presented during the legislative hearings that accidents are much more likely when people are distracted by being on their cellphone and texting presents an even greater danger.

Whether or not AB 151 and other similar proposed legislation are passed, a driver who is texting or using a handheld cell phone and gets into a car accident can be penalized through a civil suit. Nevada’s punitive damages statute, NRS 42.005, permits imposing punitive damages against a defendant who “has been guilty of oppression, . . . or malice, express or implied.” Malice has been defined by the Nevada Supreme Court to include situations where a defendant consciously disregarded the safety of others. Given that the dangers of cell phone use or texting while driving are so obvious, a driver distracted by a cell phone, especially by texting, can be said to have consciously disregarded the safety of other people on the road.