A Florida Resident Drove Around with a Cellphone Jammer for Two Years Before Being Caught

[n2doc]

Many states have banned talking on your cellphone while driving, but Florida is not one of them. So 60-year-old maverick Jason R. Humphreys took matters into his own hands.

As The Tampa Tribune reports, Humphreys brought a cellphone jammer along on his commute every day for two years. You know, to ensure that his fellow commuters remained focused on the road. Until two local sheriff’s deputies caught him in the act and slapped him with $48,000 worth of fines, which he must pay or otherwise respond to within a month.

It turns out that Humphreys would have gone undetected if it hadn’t been for a local carrier noticing that something was messing with its towers. MetroPCS (which is owned by T-Mobile) notified the Federal Communications Commission that there was a peculiar outage on a certain patch of the Interstate 4 highway and downtown Tampa exactly a year ago. The FCC looked into it and discovered that wideband emissions — broadcast activity with wide frequencies or wavelengths — were emanating from a blue Toyota Highlander.

Still, Humphreys went on jamming for another year until two county sheriff deputies pulled him over. They were able to confirm his use of the cellphone jammer before they even searched his vehicle and found it behind a seat cover. As they approached his SUV, their two-way radios were disconnected from their dispatcher.

more

https://www.yahoo.com/tech/a-florida-resident-drove-around-with-a-cellphone-jammer-84369099229.html

[liberal N proud]

1. I have mixed feeling on this...

While it pisses me off that this guy is making himself the "enforcer" preventing people from using cell phones while driving.

On the other hand, something has to be done about all the distracted driving which is predominantly but not limited to cell phones. I am so sick of sitting behind someone at a stop light while they are texting their friends.

But who says you can be the self appointed enforcer?

[Mariana]

7. He was also jamming the phones of people who weren't driving.

There's never any reason whatsoever to prevent a passenger in a vehicle from using his or her phone.

[liberal N proud]

8. Like I said - mixed

It is good that people driving while using their cell phone got blocked, but those not driving shouldn't have to suffer.

Also, who died and left him cop? Mostly I feel he was in the wrong, but still thinking about how much safer I was that month when I drove through Tampa which right now is #%@$ mess.

[Open_n_Shut]

14. There's no mostly about it...

This guy is the know it all do-gooder asshole...

He probably caused as much distraction as he "fixed" by people fiddling with their phones trying to fix them...

[Blue_Tires]

10. fuck him...

he's no different from the fundie mom who's so "concerned" some kids might read some potentially controversial library book that she personally checks out every copy in the local system and makes them all vanish...

[liberal N proud]

12. I totally agree

that is why I condemn this act. On the other hand, stopping people from texting and talking on their phones while driving is something I support, just not like this.

[KurtNYC]

2. There is a hands free law here but it seems to be enforced only if you are pulled over for

something else. Has any state banned talking on a hands free system such as the ones built into many cars or the earpiece?

Jamming other drivers' phone is only going to make them redial, etc. It won't make them stop trying to use their phone. If anything it will make them more distracted.

[msanthrope]

3. It's Florida....he should use SYG as his defense. nt

[cbdo2007]

4. It's amazing how many people have facebook on their phones on the highway

with kids in the car, driving 65 mph.

[upaloopa]

5. Two years ago we went to Santa Anita race track on a bus

with my wife's coworkers. Seemed almost every car on the 101 was on a cell phone.
This year same trip very few were on the cell phone. But we noticed that those who were tended to be driving BMW Audi Jags and such,

[msongs]

6. i'd like to invite him to our local cinemas when i want to see a flick without cellholes nt

[Blue_Tires]

9. What an ignorant asshole...

[frylock]

11. hope it was worth it, asshole

[GeorgeGist]

15. asshole?

[Mariana]

16. Asshole.

He wasn't just jamming the drivers. He was jamming the passengers, too. No reason they shouldn't be able to use their phones. Fuck him.

[Logical]

18. LOL, temper temper. You have anger issues! nt

[Mariana]

21. LOL!

Seriously, I never use the phone while I'm driving. If I have to make a call or answer one, I pull off the road every time - or if I have a passenger, I ask them to do it. I frequently use it while I'm a passenger.

I wonder why we didn't seem to have this kind of problem back when everybody and his brother had CB radios in their cars. Did anyone ever propose to prohibit the use of CB's while driving? I don't remember.

[frylock]

17. you heard

[Spirochete]

13. Not a good idea

Driver talking on phone. phone stops working. Driver takes eyes off road to look at the phone - "what the fuck is the matter with my ph-" CRASH!

[bigwillq]

19. Pay the fine, buddy (nt)+

[herding cats]

20. He's lucky he wasn't involved in an accident and needed someone to call 911

He'd have been in a world of hurt.