Rhode Island residents can take comfort in the fact that its roads are some of the safest in the nation, although the state suffers from a relatively high alcohol-related fatality rate. Although overall road accident fatalities decreased by about 20 percent from 2010 to 2015, fatalities due to distracted driving in particular are still trending upward.
Distracted Driving Law in Rhode Island
Texting and driving is banned for all drivers. The use of any type of cell phone, even a hands-free version, is banned for school bus drivers and drivers under 18. Only narrow emergency exceptions exist.
Penalties
The fine for distracted driving in Rhode Island is $85 for the first offense, $100 for a second offense and $125 for a third offense. Drivers under 18 who use a cell phone, however, are subject to fines of $50 for a first offense and $100 for both second and third offenses. After a third offense, the young driver’s license will be suspended until he turns 18, however long or short that may be.
In the Event of an Accident in Rhode Island
If you cause an accident while distracted and you are sued, your actions could cost you a lot more than a traffic citation would, regardless of whether you are the defendant or the victim who filed the lawsuit. Rhode Island courts follow the common law rule of negligence per se, under which you are considered automatically negligent in an accident if you were breaking a safety law, such as the distracted driving law. If your negligence caused the accident, you will be held liable for the injured party’s damages.
If you are the victim and you file a lawsuit against a driver, and if you were violating the distracted driving law by, for example, texting while driving, the defendant’s lawyer will pounce on this fact to assert that you were also negligent and that the accident was therefore partly your fault. If the court agrees, it will assign you a percentage of fault – say, 35 percent — and your damages will be reduced by 35 percent. You will also have to pay 35 percent of the other side’s damages if he counterclaims against you.
If your conduct under the circumstances was extremely careless – texting while driving at night during a snowstorm might be enough, for example – the court might find that your conduct constituted “gross negligence”, and the victim could hold you liable for an additional sum in punitive damages.
Possible Criminal Penalties
Civil negligence can cost you a lot of money, as detailed above. Criminal negligence, on the other hand, can land you in prison if a death or serious injury results. Under Rhode Island law, criminal negligence is carelessness so extreme that it exhibits little regard for human life and safety or callous indifference to the consequences of one’s own actions. Texting while driving could qualify under certain circumstances – taking your eyes off the road for 45 seconds might qualify, for example, or texting combined with some other traffic offense such as speeding.
Since the dividing line between civil and criminal negligence is fuzzy, there is usually no certain answer until the court reaches a decision on your case.
– Updated through September 1, 2016