Nevada considers banning texting & walking

Who says you can't legislate stupidity? One Nevada assemblymen is going to try.

Harvey Munford, a Democrat representing Las Vegas, introduced Assembly Bill 123 Thursday -- a law that would ban texting while walking across a street.  If police catch you texting while walking, whether you're on a busy urban street or in a quiet residential neighborhood, the ticket could cost you as much as $250.

The idea sounds outrageous but similar laws are already in effect in cities across the country, including Fort Lee, N.J. which last year issued the same ban.  Seattle is also considering the texting + walking ban.

Munford told the Los Angeles Times that he began watching for the practice while behind the wheel last year after a complaint by a constituent.

“I was just amazed by what I saw,” he said. “So many people are almost oblivious. They are texting and texting, totally unaware as they cross even six-lane highways.”

He said young people are the biggest offenders.

“When kids get out of school, where they’ve been banned from using their phones all day, they go immediately to their texts,” he told The Times. “I’ve seen several close calls myself where people have almost been hit. Kids are so addicted to those things. It’s almost become a plague.”

Munford's bill allows for some exceptions, including people in texting in medical emergencies and/or reporting crimes.  "For everybody else," Munford explained, "it's just a bit of common sense."

Ya don't say...