Action 3 News - Omaha, Nebraska News, Weather, and Sports | Omaha Teens Take Action to Stop Dialing Danger

Omaha Teens Take Action to Stop Dialing Danger

Omaha, NE--Melissa Dinges of Shenandoah, IA still cannot believe her 15-year old sister is dead.

"We talked every day, we texted every day.  Emails every other day," she explains.

Angelina Bandino, who lived in southern California, was killed when she was hit from behind, walking home with friends.

"They were three houses from being home, 90 seconds maybe." 

Just three weeks ago, Dinges was told by police that the driver--an 18-year old woman--was texting right before she plowed into Bandino.   That revelation changed Dinges's opinion of texting and driving.

"I won't do it again...ever."

She and a group of eight Benson High School students are among the people pledging to make their cars a no-phone zone.  For the teens, it all started when they were asked to watch a video on You Tube about texting and driving last fall.  The graphic public service announcement made an immediate impact.  In fact, some of the students still tear up when they recall what they saw.

"You feel, like, ashamed," Jillian Humphries admits.  All the teen drivers tell Action 3 News they've texted while driving plenty of times.  But they stopped after watching the video.

"It's just scary the thought that your life could end because of a text message, 'cause you want to text back and say okay," Kimari Turner adds.

They designed a pledge vowing to stop texting behind the wheel and they're on a campaign to get other students to sign on.  So far, about 100 at Benson High have joined their mission.

And they are challenging other schools in the metro to tackle this problem, as well, hoping peer pressure will lead to a big change. 

"If kids talk about it amongst their peers, it's a really big deal," Turner emphasizes.

Their passion is also leading them to look for a permanent fix.  They're planning to testify before the Nebraska Legislature Monday that an all-out ban on texting for drivers is necessary.  Right now, the law only prohibits cell phone use for teen drivers.

"For all of us why we stopped texting and driving was because we didn't want to be that person that hurt everybody else, we didn't want to be the person responsible for everyone else's deaths." states Ariel Bussing.

And they hope more people will realize phoning at the wheel is not worth the consequences.

Now when Bobby Washington gets in his car, he puts his phone in the cup holder.  "I just turn my phone on silent."

Several of the other young people say their phones go in their purses and backpacks which are stored in the backseat to lessen the urge to reach for them.  Or if they need to use their phones, they hand them off to a passenger.  They believe their steps are making Omaha a safer and better place to live.

Back in Shenandoah, Dinges has signed up with a group called FocusDriven.  It advocates a phone-free car.  She wants to see Iowa enact a law banning texting.  So far, it has no laws on the books regarding cell phones in the car. 

For Dinges, it's a way to turn a tragedy into something positive.  "I made a promise to her [Bandino] that day at the cemetery that I would change things and that's what I'm trying to do."  She hopes her experience and very personal appeal will make people think.

Oprah Winfrey is also campaigning for Americans to break the habit of phoning in the car.  So far more than 100,000 people have signed up on her web site, promising to stop being distracted drivers.

Reported by Carol Wang, cwang@action3news.com