Woman pulled over for drinking coffee while driving in St Paul
The dangers of drinking alcohol while driving are well known. But have you stopped to consider that it might be dangerous to drink other beverages while on the road as well? Police in the St Paul, Minnesota area have, and they have been stopping motorists and issuing warnings because of it.
One example comes from Fox News, who reported on an incident involving the morning commute of St Paul driver Lindsey Krieger. According to Krieger, an officer followed her as she merged onto the I94 freeway, then hit his lights and pulled her over.
When Krieger stopped for the officer she was asked the normal sorts of questions like “Do you know why I pulled you over? Do you know what you did wrong?”
Krieger said she honestly had no idea why she was pulled over, and when the officer informed her it was for drinking coffee, she thought it was a joke.
Coffee Can Be a Distraction
In reality, the stop was no laughing matter. The officer had a very real and legitimate concern that her cup of morning coffee could distract her to the point where her driving ability was impaired.
This is consistent with many other studies, including one from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration which found that coffee is the most dangerous thing to eat or drink behind the wheel. According to the study, one of the main problems with coffee is that drivers can accidentally spill it. If the coffee is hot, this could actually cause injury. And even if the coffee is lukewarm or iced, a spill will definitely take attention off the road as drivers scramble to clean up.
Is Drinking and Driving Coffee Illegal?
Back to that St Paul traffic stop…you might wonder if the police officer was really justified in making a traffic stop for coffee-drinking. The answer is yes. While drinking coffee while driving is not illegal in and of itself, distracted driving is a ticketable offense. However in this specific case the driver was let off with a warning.
Have You Been Injured By a Distracted Driver?
If you drive during morning or evening rush hour in the LA area, you have probably seen drivers eating and drinking all kinds of things. While it would be a massive job for police to try to stop this behavior, you can at least hold drivers distracted by food and drink liable for the cost of any accidents they may cause.
To do so, you will need to enlist the aid of an experienced car accident injury attorney such as Fernando D. Vargas. Attorney Vargas can help you prove that the driver who caused your accident was driving recklessly or negligently and fight aggressively for you to receive full and fair compensation.
