Texting Teen Falls Into Manhole

[GirlsAloudFan]

By Victoria Cavaliere
NBCNewYork.com
updated 4:20 p.m. CT, Sun., July 12, 2009

We all know that walking and texting is a tough combination -- but a Staten Island teen learned the hard way when she fell into an uncovered sewer manhole while trying to send a message.

Now, the family of Alexa Longueira, 15, intends to sue.

The girl suffered a fright and some scrapes on her arms back after she dropped into the hole on Victory Boulevard.

"It was four or five feet, it was very painful. I kind of crawled out and the DEP guys came running and helped me," Longueria told the Staten Island Advance.. "They were just, like, 'I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

For its part, the Department of Environmental Protection said its workers had turned away briefly to grab some cones when the incident occurred.

"We regret that this happened and wish the young woman a speedy recovery," DEP spokeswoman Mercedes Padilla said in a statement. She added that crews were flushing a high-pressure sewer line at the time.

The girl was checked out at Staten Island University Hospital and released.

Sewer line workers are supposed to cut off pedestrian access to work sites or at least mark them with warning signs.

The family said they will file a lawsuit -- for what, though, is not immediately clear. Her mother, Kim Longueira, said it doesn't matter that her daughter was walking and texting, and also, the 'gross' factor that can't be ignored.

"Oh my God, it was putrid," she said. "One of her sneakers is still down there"

Texting Teen Falls Down Manhole - News- msnbc.com

WTF is up with that, huh? Has texting become too dangerous? Do y'all text as you walk? I know I do. And so does Nicola Roberts.

 

[deep]

hurry, put the cover on.

 

[deep]

Has texting become too dangerous? Do y'all text as you walk? I know I do. And so does Nicola Roberts.

texting is not dangerous

people not looking where they are walking is dangerous

how does someone not see a 4 foot wide hole ?

would she see a red light?
what if person had a heart attack and was lying on the side walk,
would she just walk on top of them?

she could step on some dog shit, fall and crack her head open.

 

[AliEnvy]

Friends don't let friends text and drive walk.

 

[cobl04]

workers had turned away briefly to grab some cones

says it all

 

[The Sad Punk]

We should stop these younger people from using "mobile" phones full stop, because life is precious, and God and the Bible.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

A thirteen year-old in California managed to run up a cell phone bill totaling nearly $22,000 the Associated Press reports.

After Ted Estarija added his teenage son to his Verizon cell phone plan, the teenager racked up $21,917 in data usage charges from downloading 1.4 million kilobytes of data his first month with the phone.

The Consumerist explains that since the family did not have a data plan, Verizon charged them by the megabyte.

So what does over $20,000 in data charges buy you?

According to the Business Insider, 1.4 million kilobytes is equivalent to about 200 downloaded songs, or one hour of played video.

Verizon agreed to waive the charges, but the teen won't be getting his phone back.

The AP reports:

Estarija says after the first media reports, Verizon said they would credit his account for the entire amount. He has also suspended his son's account.

 

[Jive Turkey]

Why did they bother reporting the data in kilobytes? Its less than a gig and a half. I had no idea data plans were so expensive

 

[Vincent Vega]

Cell phones calculate any data charge in kilobytes, so that's what the bill showed. But yes, they could have given a translation into GB. It's 1.34GB. Not bad. Also gives you an idea of the value of your unlimited plans.

I wouldn't even say it's expensive. $22,000/1,400,000kb is 0.016$/kb.

 

[deep]

Texting Driver Gets 6 years in Death of Teen Bicyclist

December 11, 2009

SANTA ANA -- A 22 year old man convicted of killing a 14-year-old bicyclist while texting and driving under the influence of two prescription drugs was sentenced today to six years in prison.

Jeffrey Francis Woods was convicted last month of gross vehicular manslaughter for the Aug. 29, 2007, crash that killed 14-year-old Danny Oates.

Prosecutors said Woods was also impaired that day by taking Vicodin and Xanax.

Woods faced a maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison and a minimum of probation for the killing, according to Deputy District Attorney Susan Price.

Prosecutors say Woods was driving erratically and following too closely to other vehicles when he was driving eastbound on Indianapolis Avenue in Huntington Beach on August 29, 2007. He was also under the influence of controlled substances, Vicodin and Xanax, and was sending text messages and distracted while driving, attorneys said.

Woods was sending text messages to his friends, prosecutors said, attempting to illegally obtain Vicodin and Xanax. The last text message he sent was one minute before the crash and read, "Need bars?." "Bars" is a street term for Xanax, attorneys said.

Witnesses say Woods suddenly swerved in his pick-up truck over several lanes into oncoming traffic and crossed into the bike lane on the wrong side of the road, crashing into 14 year old Daniel Oates. Oates, who was riding his bicycle, was thrown over 200 feet and landed in a traffic lane. The defendant then crashed into a palm tree, drove through a wall, and came to a stop in the backyard of a nearby home.

Oates was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash. He died from multiple blunt force injuries caused by the impact of the crash. Oates was riding with his best friend to pick up their class schedules in anticipation of the new school year. Oates, who was nicknamed "Oatie," was a junior lifeguard.

The defense had claimed that Woods suffered a seizure while driving and was unconscious at the time of the crash and was later diagnosed with epilepsy.

The case was the Orange County District Attorney's office first prosecution of a felony manslaughter jury trial that involved text messaging.

.

 

[AliEnvy]

Horrific. I'm glad the sentence was harsh, too bad it wasn't the maximum.

 

[Jive Turkey]

I wouldn't even say it's expensive. $22,000/1,400,000kb is 0.016$/kb.

Good point. I guess I just take for granted how much I download on my laptop

 

[deep]

People who text while driving

are the scum of the earth.

 

[Bonoa]

And people who start to text while you are in a conversation with them are just plain rude neanderthals!

 

[mad1]

I have walked while texting and I have walked slowly and never straight, LOL!