Although the state's ban on texting while driving is in its seventh month, most police officers in the county have yet to give anyone a ticket.
"It doesn't have much teeth," Schuylkill Haven police Chief Jeff Walcott said Tuesday.
The law went into effect at 12:01 a.m. March 8, making texting while driving a primary offense carrying a fine of $50.
Despite the fact that police can pull a driver over solely for texting, proving it in court may be a different matter.
Walcott said his officers have yet to issue a texting violation because it is hard to determine if a person is texting or simply making a telephone call.
To make matters worse, police do not have the authority to look at a person's cellphone to see if they indeed have been texting.
Although a search warrant can be obtained for the cellphone, getting such a warrant for an offense that carries a $50 fine does not make sense, Walcott said.
Pottsville police Capt. Steven Durkin said city officers on one occasion obtained a search warrant for a cellphone while investigating a serious pedestrian accident.
He said officers wanted to rule out that the driver of the vehicle was indeed texting at the time of the crash and went though the proper channels as required with any electronic communication device.
"If we have a serious enough incident, there is a reason to take those extra steps," Durkin said.
In the city's case, the driver of the vehicle was cleared after telephone records showed no text messages initiated at the time of the crash.
Like Walcott, Durkin said city officers have not issued a citation under the new law.
However, there may be other ways to provide enough evidence in court to make the texting while driving charge stick.
Walcott said if an officer sees someone typing on a cellphone while stopped at a red light and then continuing that action when the light turns green, it can be assumed the person is creating a text and not making a telephone call.
That testimony by the officer may be sufficient for a magisterial district judge to find the person guilty of the offense.
"Will that be good enough? That remains to be seen," Walcott said. "We will have to have enough case law to define what kind of evidence they will allow in court."
Magisterial District Judge Stephen J. Bayer, Tamaqua, has had one person come through his office charged with violating the texting law.
That case, however, did not have to be decided.
Bayer said the accused faced other offenses and chose to plead guilty to all, including the texting offense.
"I have not heard any evidence so far dealing with that," he said of the texting law.
The judge agreed with Walcott, saying it is difficult for an officer to differentiate whether a person is indeed texting.
One possibility, Bayer said, is an officer being alongside a vehicle being driven by a person who is texting.
"The officer will have a vantage point to see the texting and the person may not even know they are there ... people texting are usually oblivious of who or what's around them."
Another indication is after typing whether the person puts the telephone up to their ear to carry on their conversation.
"I feel that would be good evidence," Bayer said.
When the law was announced, Barry J. Schoch, secretary of the state Department of Transportation, stressed the dangers of texting while driving and thus not paying attention to the road.
"Your most important job when behind the wheel is to focus only on driving," he said. "Most people would never close their eyes for five seconds while driving, but that's how long you take your eyes of the road, or even longer, every time you send or read a text message."
Texting is dangerous not only to the distracted driver.
"It's not just your own life you're risking; it's the lives and safety of every motorist around you," Schoch said.
The law makes it a primary offense to use an "Interactive Wireless Communication Device" to send, read or write a text-based message. It defines such devices as wireless phone, personal digital assistant, smart phone, portable or mobile computer, or similar devices that can be used for texting, instant messaging, emailing or browsing the Internet.
A text message is defined as a text-based message such as a text message, instant message, email or other written communication composed or received on an IWCD.
The law supersedes and pre-empts any local ordinances restricting the use of interactive wireless devices by drivers.