A state police trooper had a close call recently when another motorist rear-ended his squad car — while the negligent driver was trying to change the ring tone on his new cellular telephone.
The accident happened Dec. 28, just days before a new law took effect prohibiting the use of electronic devices while driving. The trooper had pulled from the median on Interstate 80 near Utica and the other driver, who also was speeding, struck the cruiser from behind.
“A lot more people are on their phones while driving,” said Trooper Craig Graham, spokesman for District 17 state police in La Salle, “and studies have shown the problem it’s not what you’re doing, it’s what you’re thinking: you’re paying more attention to your phone than to your driving.”

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