Dozens of drivers were cited for using phones while driving near Tucson, according to the Arizona Department of Public Safety Highway Patrol.
Sixty-seven citations were issued along Interstate 10 while troopers were investigating a fatal commercial vehicle crash May 13, the department posted on social media. The use of phones caused a significant slowdown as people took photos or videos while driving, according to the department.
The increased enforcement of distracted driving in the Tucson case was impromptu, sparked by how many violations troopers who were working at the crash were noticing, said spokesperson Sgt. Kameron Lee.
The use of phones causes two issues, he said — the slowdown of traffic and the possibility of another collision because of distraction.
He added that filming or taking photos of a crash site, in this case a fatality, is inappropriate.
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"Unfortunately, we see this a lot, where people are driving past a scene, and they video it," Lee said.
The department has been in the middle of a campaign called Arrive Alive Arizona that includes increased enforcement in targeted areas.
On May 13, the same day as the Tucson crash, DPS partnered with police agencies throughout the West Valley on an enforcement campaign for a 10-mile stretch of I-10 between Loop 101 and Loop 303, according to Lee. During that detail, 342 drivers were stopped between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., including 37 for distracted driving, Lee said.
On May 19, DPS conducted an increased enforcement on that same stretch of I-10 from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m., and 197 people were stopped, Lee said.
It is illegal to hold, manipulate or rest a phone on your body at any time while a vehicle is in motion, Lee said. If a driver is stopped at a red light, they can hold the phone, but it must be put away when the car begins to move. Hands-free operations, like using navigation or talk-to-text, are allowed, but the driver cannot hold the phone, he said.
When the law was first enacted in 2021, there was an 18-month awareness period during which DPS issued only warnings, but now the law is in full effect and will result in a citation, he said.
