New Jersey last week enacted a tough distracted-driver law: A motorist who kills someone while using a handheld cellphone can face charges of vehicular homicide.
New Jersey Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno last Wednesday signed into a law legislation that permits the prosecution of distracted drivers who cause fatal accidents, according to The Record of New Jersey.
http://www.northjersey.com/news/Tougher_NJ_driver_cellphone_rules_signed_into_law.html?page=all
The newspaper noted that the legislation has been tagged the “Kulesh, Kubert and Bolis Law,” named after three victims of accidents caused by drivers too busy with their cellphones to watch the road.
Helen Kulesh, 89, died in 2006 in Elizabeth, N.J., struck by a driver was on a cellphone, according to The Record.
David and Linda Kubert each lost a leg following a 2009 accident in Mine Hill, N.J. They were on a motorcycle when they were hit by a distracted motorist.
And Toni Donato-Bolis, and her 9-month-old unborn son, were both killed in 2011 in Gloucester County in a crash caused by a driver who was allegedly texting, The Record reported.
In New Jersey, a conviction for vehicular manslaughter carries a penalty of five to 10 years, a fine of up to $150,000, or both, according to The Record.