Advocates for Cell Phone Safety merged with the Partnership
for Safe Driving, a national organization headquartered in Washington, DC and
dedicated to eliminating all forms of dangerous driving.
On November 3, 1999, our sweet little
daughter, Morgan Lee, died as a result of injuries sustained in a
car crash the previous day. Our car was broadsided by a driver who
failed to stop for a stop sign while using his cellular phone. This
website is our attempt to express our absolute devastation from the
loss of our only child who was the center of our lives. If you want
to read the complete story of what happened to our baby, please read
my open letter written to Car Talkand their
response. Then, return to this site to learn more.
In Loving Memory of
Morgan Lee Pena May 18,
1997
November 3, 1999
Contacts: We are committed to raising public awareness
of this issue! Prior to this crash, we and the rest of the public, lacked a
meaningful awareness of the danger of drivers using cellular phones while operating a
vehicle. Since the horrific death of our daughter, we have discovered that the use of
cellular phones by drivers has become a very substantial safety problem. Studies have
indicated that the risk of crash quadruples when a cell phone is being used by a motorist
-- the risk equals that of an intoxicated driver. Please,
print this flyer and this flyer
and
distribute it to people you know or post it in a public location in your area. They detail
where you can write to demand that this issue be addressed. Click here to find out how you can
do more. Opposed to this legislation? Click here now.
Multimedia:
Audio WWRL NY July 10, 2006. Listen to a fiery debatebetween the Partnership's director and a representative from the
cell phone industry, about the dangers of talking on cell phones
while driving..
more...
Article:
Hands-Free Cell Phone Use Takes a Hit. New NHTSA Cell Study Results:
In a closely watched real-world study published this year, a team
from the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute and the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration watched 100 drivers for a
year, concluding that the use of electronic devices such as cell
phones precipitated many crashes and near-misses.
more...
Hi My name
is Brad. I live in Colorado. I've been happily married for 6 years.
We Just had our first baby 2 months ago. I'm currently going through
training at UPS to be a driver. As part of the training they go over
distraction while driving. The Dateline news report about Morgan was
shown to us. I am so sorry about your loss, I could do nothing but
relate to the video. I could not even begin to imagine such a
terrible loss. As soon as the video was over I called my wife, since
we both talk on the cell phone while driving. We never will again. I
just want to thank you for sharing your story.
Sincerely
Brad Erwin
The Wall
Street Journal column is complete and available to read here.
Thank you for your cooperation.
cellphonedriving02.htm
Did you know ???
The risk of having a traffic accident while using a cellular phone
is the same as that while driving drunk (NEJM, 2/13/97)
Cell phone users are four to five HUNDRED percent more likely to
get into traffic accidents than those who do not use them (NEJM, 2/13/97)
There is a nine-fold increase in the risk of fatality given the
use of a cellular telephone (Violanti, 1998, case-control study of data from 223,137
traffic crashes in Oklahoma from 1992 - 1995)
Violanti and Marshall studied the association between cellular
telephone use and EIGHTEEN other driver inattention factors and traffic crash risk.
Results indicated that talking for more than 50 minutes per month on a cellular phone in a
vehicle was associated with a 5.59 fold increased risk of a traffic crash over other
factors.
The Insurance Research Council's Public Attitude Monitor showed
that four out of five survey respondents (82%) agree that using cell phones in cars
distracts drivers and increases the likelihood of accidents; 84% of cell phone owners
agree
The use of cell phones while vehicle is in motion has already been
banned in Australia, Spain, Israel, Portugal, Italy, Brazil, Chile, Switzerland, Great
Britain, Singapore, Taiwan, Sweden, Japan, and Austria. Driving with a cell phone was
banned in Japan after a study found the number of traffic accidents related to the phones
increased by 11 percent from 1997 to 1998. In the month after the law went into effect,
the number of accidents caused by drivers using cell phones fell by about 75 percent.
