State Police issue more than 800 tickets for texting-while-driving violations over Thanksgiving holiday

Albany — New York State Police issued 824 tickets for texting-while-driving violations over the Thanksgiving holiday. Approximately 330 of the tickets were issued as a direct result of “Operation Hang-Up,” an enhanced enforcement campaign that was conducted from Nov. 23-27. The additional tickets were issued by State Police conducting normal patrol operations. From January to June, a monthly average of 429 tickets were issued to motorists for using a handheld electronic device while driving. In July, Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed a new law to strengthen enforcement of texting-while-driving violations. The law makes using a handheld electronic device for activities such as texting while driving a primary traffic offense, giving law enforcement the power to stop motorists solely for engaging in this activity. Additionally, the penalty for using a handheld device while driving has been increased from two to three points Since the new law was signed in July, at least 1,000 tickets have been issued each month. By the numbers The tickets were issued through the state outside of New York City. According to information provided by the state police, the counties were the most tickets were issued were: Ulster (99) Albany (73) Onondaga (54) Orange (47) Westchester (45)