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Shullsburg students urged to take pledge to never text and drive
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Shullsburg students listened to a presentation on the dangers of texting and driving on Thursday, May 15. -Photo by Tallitha Reese

Over 180 students from Shullsburg Middle and High Schools recently learned about the dangers of texting and driving and were urged to take the pledge to never text behind the wheel at www.ItCanWait.com.

Shullsburg schools teamed up with AT&T, AAA, the Wisconsin State Patrol and State Rep. Howard Marklein as part of the It Can Wait® movement to remind students that text messages can – and should – wait until after driving.

“All too often, our teenagers think they are invincible, but they need to know that texting and driving is extremely dangerous and can be deadly,” “said Shullsburg principal Melissa Emler.  “Too many lives have been lost because someone decided to text and drive.  We hope our students take this message to heart and pledge to never text behind the wheel.”

The assembly at Shullsburg was part of a series of high school events AT&T, AAA and the Wisconsin State Patrol are holding this school year to drive home the dangers of texting behind the wheel.

Speakers during the assembly included Wisconsin State Trooper Todd Car; Jim Jermain, regional vice president of external affairs of AT&T Wisconsin; State Rep. Howard Marklein (R-Spring Green) and John LeGault from the DOT Bureau of Transportation Safety.

Students were shown a documentary called “The Last Text” that shares real stories about lives altered or ended by someone’s decision to text and drive.

Several students were also given the chance to experience firsthand the dangers of texting while driving in a safe setting through AAA’s distracted driving simulator.

After the program, LeGault demonstrated to students the consequences of not wearing a seatbelt in a crash with a rollover simulator.

Wisconsin marked the third anniversary of its no-texting-while-driving ban on December 1, 2013. The law prohibits sending an e-mail or text message while driving and imposes a fine of up to $400.  As a primary enforcement law, officers may stop and ticket drivers solely for texting and driving.  Wisconsin is among 41 states that ban text messaging by all drivers.

Texting while driving causes more than 200,000 car crashes on American roadways each year, according to the National Safety Council1.