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Boise Needs a “NO TEXTING” Ordinance
July 27, 2018 
NOTICE TO CITY COUNCILORS. PEOPLE ARE WATCHING YOU! Polite society doesn’t text at the movie theater, the Shakespeare Festival, or at church. Most parents don’t let their kids text at the dinner table. Teachers don’t allow texts during class, and it is suicide to text while driving. Boise City Councilor Holli Woodings got busted by […]
Coppers Ask For Equal Treatment On Texting Ban While Driving
Idaho coppers including the State Police, Sheriff’s Association and Chiefs of Police offered testimony today before the Idaho House during a hearing on the proposed texting ban while driving. ALL THREE GROUPS ASKED THE LAWMAKERS TO REMOVE THE EXEMPTION FOR COPPERS. The House agreed and sent the bill back for amendments to remove the law […]
Boise PD Bans Cell Phone Texting In Cars
Citing his own distraction while driving, Boise’s top copper, Mike Masterson, announced a new policy banning texting on phones and mobile devices in BPD squad cars. The use of those front seat laptops will continue until new hands free and voice recognition equipment can be purchased and installed within the budget constraints and technological developments. […]
Boise Top Copper On Police Texting
Boise PD Chief Mike Masterson has monitored the GUARDIAN coverage and comments from readers on the issue of police texting. Here are his thoughts to the GUARDIAN. EDITOR NOTE– For sake of discussion we can define TEXTING as “reading or typing messages on electronic devices which require the driver of a motor vehicle to divert […]
Driving, Texting Don’t Mix–For Anyone!
The Feds have just come out with strict rules against texting while driving for truckers. Meanwhile, cities and states across the nation have weighed in as well. Idaho legislators will probably consider a bill against texting and driving this session. The GUARDIAN previously WEIGHED IN on all the talk against texting while driving (we hereby […]
Texting Crash Should Be Lesson For Coppers
When the young guy texting on his cellphone smacked a Boise copper’s patrol unit over the weekend, the incident became THE major local story. The TV newsies came up with facts and figures of the dangers of inattentive driving along with in-car video of what it looks like behind the wheel when one texts. Coppers […]
What Happened To Our “Boise Way?”
Guest Opinion by RICARDO OCHOA On the road it meant driving with intelligence and realizing the speed limit is not a suggestion. Your turn signals are meant to be used in a timely manner. One of the most basic ways to be respectful is to use your turn signal. We can’t read your mind. So […]
“Hang Up And Drive”
If you are one of those who think the coppers are ignoring enforcement of the “no texting law,” think again. The GUARDIAN has obtained data from Fourth District Traffic Court showing that 1866 tickets were issued in Ada County alone in 2021. Here is a breakdown of the enforcement actions. Boise City PD–961 Eagle City […]
New Law: “Hands Free Even At Stoplights”
If Boise coppers enforce this law, all it will take is an officer on foot at Capitol and University to write tickets. IDAHO STATE POLICE NEWS RELEASE Beginning Wednesday, July 1, 2020, drivers throughout Idaho will recommit to safe, responsible driving by following a new law meant to keep drivers engaged while behind the wheel. […]
Mobile Phone Law Should Be For All
If driving with a cell phone in your face is like having a six-pack under your belt, would you send a copper out on patrol with six beers in him? A proposed Ada County ordinance would prohibit SOME drivers from using cell phones while driving, but there would also be exemptions for coppers and other […]
New Year’s Resolutions We’d Like
We somehow made it through another year which means it’s time to work on those “New Year Resolutions,” beyond losing weight, getting more sleep, being nice, etc. Here are a few to get the conversation started… –Cut allotted weather segments to one-third the current air time. No teasers like, “will it snow?” Just say snow […]
P.U.C. Should Hang Up On Landline Subsidy
With the dwindling number of people using traditional “landline” telephones, the Idaho Public Utilities Commission has doubled a nearly 30 year old surcharge on phone lines to subsidize the Idaho Universal Service Fund (IUSF). The fund was created in 1988 to tax what used to be “The Phone Company.” Back in the day, the company […]
Random Points To Ponder
Sorry for the lack of material of late, but the fire in my ample belly is not burning too hot. For the sake of discussion and hoping to stimulate some discussion I will offer points to ponder, admittedly not researched, but worth noting. –DAVE FRAZIER, editor ADA COUNTY–We have been informed that two former “operations […]
Listening For 10 Years, Chief Leaves Peaceful Legacy
Serving the citizens of Boise and changing the culture of the Boise Police has been a goal of retiring Chief Mike Masterson. When he took command of the local coppers, shootings by coppers and other critical incidents were out of control. Masterson’s management style has included big doses of LISTENING. He has been a frequent […]
Obama, Feds Exempt Coppers From Tech Ban While Driving
When the national media announced a proposed Federal Government ban on ALL in car devices–with emphasis on eliminating texting while driving, the GUARDIAN sought clarification from the United States Transportation Department in Washington, D.C. We wondered if the ban would apply to coppers who we all see driving down the road looking at computer screens […]
GUARDIAN “De-listed” As Media By BPD Spokeswoman
Boise City’s attempt to control the media and deny the GUARDIAN normal access afforded the news media took another turn Monday when we received this curt message from the police spokesperson: Dave – FYI – You are no longer on the “media” email list. The list is for media only. Feel free to call me […]
Emergency Texters, A National Issue
The Idaho House of Representatives is about to consider a “no texting bill” that passed the Senate Wednesday. Interestingly, we don’t see any exemptions for coppers and firefighters. The Fed transportation people, AAA, and just about everyone who has watched a car weaving slowly down the road agree that reading and writing on computers while […]
GUARDIAN Top 2009 Stories By Month
As the legacy media does its annual TOP TEN stories to fill space between the holidays, the GUARDIAN has done the same thing based on what we have posted in the past year. In rereading some of the posts and comments, it appears we have an inordinate number of comments on police and fire stories. […]
GUARDIAN Christmas Wish List
For those who believe in Santa Clause, we have a Christmas wish list which has plenty of room for additional items. A toy train for Dave Bieter so he will stop trying to force a trolley and AMTRAK upon the kind, decent inhabitants of the City of Trees. A toy ambulance for the Boise FD […]
Who Can Drive Safely AND Text?
Lots of buzz today about proposed laws to ban texting while driving. One source claimed truck drivers were 23 times more likely to crash while texting than not texting. The Idaho branch of the American Automobile Association, AAA, endorses the idea of Idaho joining 13 other states banning texting while driving. But like everything else […]
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