A PSA video released Monday by the Williamson County School District and Sheriff's Office lasts a little more than a minute and features SRO officers from all ten Williamson County high schools.
The video may be short but the message is clear; don't drive distracted.
"It is just an increasing problem every single year, it gets worse and worse and worse with the number of crashes that is caused by distracted drivers," said Cpt. Mark Wanwright.
Last school year Williamson County lost five teens to car crashes in a span of three months. So, beginning this year every new driver in the county is required to take part in a mandatory Checkpoints Program, a course that allows parents to keep a closer eye on their teens' driving.
"It gives parents the opportunity to say hey, lets put the breaks on here. We're going to talk about this and come up with some set rules," course instructor, Paul Fantuzzi said.
Wanwright said parents may also want to consider the example they are setting. "Even as parents we need to make sure that we're not doing things with our smartphones that distract us because the young ones sitting in the seat beside us or behind us see exactly what we're doing," Wanwright said.
Keep in mind distracted driving isn't just about cell phones, other teens in the vehicle can also serve as a major distraction.
