Now the heartbreaking story of a young child, the victim of a crash caused by distracted driving, is the motivation behind a policy idea of an outgoing state lawmaker.

Senator Jimmy Higdon presented his draft of legislation requiring hands free technology for cell phones while driving.

Howard Lefler has more, and this legislative update.

Alyssa Byrne's daughter was killed on the highway in 2022.

A truck ran into her vehicle during standstill traffic.

I look back at her and she is definitely on her way to sleep.

She's got her binky in her mouth, her cover up to her face and her eyes are slow and steady and I turn back around and black eye the.

The next thing I remember is someone saying.

Your daughter's gone.

I'm sorry.

And I remember nothing else.

For the next few days or even a week, I don't remember anything else from a brain injury.

So for 1086 days, I had an angel on earth.

And that seems like a long time.

But it's not.

It's nowhere near long enough.

In 2024, there were 5000 car accidents involving distracted driving.

Someone was injured and more than 1300 of those accidents and 26 people died.

Every time I hear a traffic fatality, either a head on collision, road departure, motorcycle hit by a vehicle, pedestrian hit by a vehicle, or bicyclists hit by a vehicle.

I asked myself the question, could this been caused by a distracted driver?

And I believe a majority of the times that's what caused the accident is the driver was distracted.

A Republican from Lebanon proposed an update to Kentucky's ban on texting while driving, which state lawmakers approved in 2010.

Basically, what it does it it makes it unlawful to have a handheld, hand-held communication device in your hand.

It does not include a citizen band radio and, while operating a vehicle on public highway in the Commonwealth, that person shall not hold or support with any part of his body a mobile electronic device.

He should not read, compose or transmit any text messages.

They can't watch moving images, including but not limited to limited to videos, movies and games.

The fines for this violation are $100.

The state senator presented the draft legislation to colleagues on a transportation committee Tuesday, but I'm very happy to lend my support to this bill in honor of all the the children and young people and families and mothers and fathers, Nance, that we've lost over something so silly.

So God bless you and thank you.

Senator Jimmy Higdon is approaching his final legislative session in January.

He announced he will not run for reelection next year.

For Kentucky edition, I'm June Leffler.

Thank you.

Joan.

There is some research that bans on texting while driving do make roads safer.

A 2015 study from the American Journal of Public Health found states had a 7% reduction in crash related hospitalizations after passing such laws.