Teenage drivers will face more restrictions after a new state law put into effect July 1 limited their cell phone use while driving.
The law, Senate Enrolled Act 16, limits the use of any telecommunication device while operating a motor vehicle by any person under 18.
Indiana is one of 21 states to enforce a similar law.
According to a study conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, drivers between the ages of 15 and 19 are four times as likely to be involved in a crash when compared with other drivers.
A concern Deputy Chief Roc Barrett of the Muncie Police Department said he has about the new law is determining how old drivers are.
"If I see someone with a cell phone driving a vehicle, how am I going to know how old they are?" he said. "If you recall when seat belt laws first came in, there was a problem with if you could stop someone to see if they were using the seatbelt."
Barrett said the Muncie Police Department has yet to receive any official notice of the law, including enforcement strategies.
"It's something you're going to see enforced," he said, "but it may be a situation where it's a citation after a crash that you see someone's been using a phone. It's a secondary thing. You may stop somebody for speeding and see they had a cell phone and cite them for that."
Gene Burton, director of public safety at Ball State, said campus police are not implementing an official strategy for enforcing the law.
"We don't plan any targeted enforcement but we'll make sure all our officers are up to speed on what the law is and what to look for," he said.
The new law also increased the age at which new drivers will be eligible for learners' permits and licenses to 15 years and six months and 16 years and six months, respectively. Fifty hours logged behind the wheel, including 10 hours of night driving, are now required to obtain a license.
The law established curfews for new drivers as well, prohibiting driving between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. within a six month probationary period after obtaining a license.
State senator Travis Holdman drafted the law. Holdman could not be reached for comment, but Mike Brown, a member of Holdman's staff, said the law was drafted after a summer study committee observed recklessness of young drivers behind the wheel.
Research by insurance companies including AAA also confirmed that teens who used cell phones while driving were more likely to be in accidents.
Brown said the law is meant to be actively enforced by police across the state.
"It's unfortunate that we have to have laws for that," he said. "Common sense you'd think would dictate it."
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