WCBC

March 21st, 2014 by WCBC Radio

The Maryland Senate has voted 46-0 to approve Jake's Law," legislation that attmepts to increase the penalty for distracted drivers who contribute to accidents that cause injury or deaths. The bill is named for 5-year-old Jake Owen, who was killed in a December, 2011 accident on Interstate 83 near the Beltway.  The driver that struck the boy's family's car was using a hand held phone at the time of the crash. The bill approved by the Senate Thursday would impose an up to three year jail term, and 12-points on the license of a driver who uses a handheld device to text, if that driver causes a crash that results in injury or death. Susan Yum, the mother of Jake Owen, watched today's Senate debate from the Senate gallery. While happy with the Senate vote, she told WBAL she prefers a version of the bill the House of Delegates approved earlier this month.