Fallen OHP Trooper's Mother Supports Proposed Driving Restriction

The mother of fallen OHP Trooper Nicholas Dees supports legislation recently filed by Senator Ron Sharp, R-District 17 that would prohibit the use of handheld electronic devices while driving.

On the night of January 31, 2015 Shelley Russell lost her only child, OHP Trooper Nicholas Dees, because of a distracted driver. Investigators said Steven Wayne Clark was updating social media on his phone when he blew through the crash scene on I-40, hitting and killing Trooper Dees.

“Until I take my last breath here on Earth, I’m going to be fighting and fighting for Nicholas’ honor and for what he has done for this state,” Russell said.

After Dees death, Governor Mary Fallin signed the bill banning texting and driving into law.

7/20/16 Related Story: Trooper’s Widow Wins Fight To Ban Texting And Driving In Oklahoma

But Senator Ron Sharp out of Shawnee said the way it's written now, drivers can only be cited if they admit to texting while driving.

“The legislation is very restrictive. It was necessary in order to get it through, but it’s very difficult to enforce,” Senator Sharp said.

Sharp's amendment would allow law enforcement to issue a ticket to drivers seen using a handheld device for anything other than an emergency in a moving car.

“We will receive hundreds of emails saying, ‘Don’t you dare take this step.’ And yet, when they have an accident, it will cost them plenty. If they lose a loved one, it will obviously cost them plenty,” he said.

“Nicholas was killed in three and a half seconds. So even if you’re answering a phone or picking up a phone and you’re not texting, but you’re looking for a phone – three and a half seconds is a blink of an eye. And so even using a cell phone is distracting,” Russell told News 9.

Senator Sharp will introduce this bill in early February.