Mobile technology company Cellebrite is working to develop software that may help police determine if a motorist’s distracted driving may have led to him or her becoming involved in a car crash.
The name that’s been assigned to this new technology is “textalyzer.” Once rolled out, it will reportedly allow police officers a way to conduct a scan on a driver’s cellphone to see if he or she was using it in the moments just before and even during a car crash.
Although no cities have yet to adopt this new technology, many are considering it as a way to curb the rates of crash-related injuries and fatalities that, as of late, seem to be increasing more and more every day.
Pedestrians are at particularly high risk for being struck. If they’re on their phones either texting or talking, they may walk out in traffic even if they don’t have the right of way. Motorists who are distracted by their phones may run red lights, fail to brake in time or to stop at stop signs, thus crashing into other cars or bystanders.
Legal experts warn that many issues regarding how to lawfully scan an individual’s phone will need to be worked out before such technology can be released for sale. How police officers will get around typically needing to have a search warrant to either scan or seize someone’s personal property is one obstacle.
Another has to do with making sure that, by accessing a motorist’s phone to run the scan, that they don’t violate any electronics privacy laws as a result.
One alternative to at least one of these concerns is for mobile software developers to come up with a program that will be able to sense when a motorist is driving. If they could, then it could be set to shut their phone off until they reached their destination.
For years, motorists have been assessed fines for using their cellphones while driving, yet the numbers of people injured in distracted driving crashes has continued to climb. Until a software is released on the market to tackle this issue, it’s likely this trend will only continue.
If you’ve suffered serious injuries at the hands of a distracted driver, then a Chicago attorney can advise you of legal options available to you that may allow you to recover medical bills in your case.
Source: Smart Cities Dive, “‘Textalyzers’ may help Chicago police reduce distracted driving,” Katie Pyzyk, accessed Feb. 23, 2018