SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — At the turn of the new year, local law enforcement will be looking for drivers using their phones behind the wheel.
The Hands-Free Law went into effect on August 2023, but law enforcement has given drivers a grace period to warn them of the dangers and the consequences they could face beginning January 1.
Even though the law went into effect in 2023, Sgt. Mike McClure with the Missouri State Highway Patrol says this last year has been used as an educational learning period for drivers caught using their phones while driving.
“It’s something that unfortunately we have to legislate to get people to do, and those people know that it’s not safe to do,” said McClure. “Yet that’s the culture that we live in.”
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Sgt. McClure warns that if a driver is caught texting and driving, the fines aren’t cheap.
“The first offense is $150, the second offense is $250, the third offense is $500 and those penalties can be added to depending on if there was a crash involving property damage that exceed a certain monetary level,” said McClure.