MARQUETTE, Mich. (WJMN) – A statewide initiative by the Michigan State Police called Operation Ghost Rider kicked off on Monday.
Michigan will be employing unmarked spotter vehicles that contain a law enforcement observer to help report distracted drivers.
“It is important to enforce it to keep the road safe,” said Tom Kinnunen, Community Service Trooper. “It is a law as well, there is a monetary fine attached to it. I think around $100. In 2022 there were a 1,000 traffic crashes in the state of Michigan due to distracted drivers and close to 60 of those crashes ended in fatalities.”
Kinnunen says that we need to be focused on the road and what is in front of us. While driving while distracted you are putting yourself and other drivers in danger.
“I want the motorist to know that it is a law, and it is illegal to have an electronic device while operating a vehicle on the road,” said Kinnunen. “There are monetary fines attached to that, it is a violation. In addition to being safe, we need to be focus on what is in front of you and around you. The phone takes away from that. We do not want to a person’s house and tell them that their loved one has been involved in a car crash because of a distracted driver. This is a 100% preventable situation. Nobody thinks it is going to happen to them until it does. So don’t put us, law enforcement in that position to give you a ticket and money out of your pocket.”
