Chief Kirk Giles and Sgt. Christopher Jackson of the Huntsville Police Department, along with City Councilman David Little, offered some figures and insights during a press conference at City Hall to highlight the first year of the city’s hands-free driving ordinance.

The law took effect July 1, 2024, and through July 1 of this year HPD issued 190 citations and 112 written warnings. But it was another number that raised eyebrows in surprise.

Whether or not the ordinance had a big impact on safety is too early to gauge but this much is true: Allstate Insurance ranked Huntsville as the 12th safest driving city in the country – a nod, the City said, to enforcement and driver awareness.

“This isn’t about the number of citations written, it’s about saving lives,’’ Giles said. “Holding a phone for even a few seconds can be the difference in arriving safely and not arriving at all.’’

Jackson echoed the Chief.

“Our goal with this ordinance was never about seeing how many tickets that we could write,’’ he said. “It’s about changes in behavior as Chief Giles and Councilman Little said. We’ve seen encouraging signs, but our work is far from done.

“Many of y’all have asked, ‘Has this ordinance made an impact on traffic safety?’ And I would love to stand up here and show you the promising numbers and sums, but that’s just not how this is gonna work.’’

Jackson compared the hands-free law to when states began making seat belts mandatory in the 1980s, leading to the Click It or Ticket national campaign that began in 1993.

“It took time for that message to sink in, for habits to shift and for people to make safety a priority,’’ Jackson said. “Remember, the goal in this is not about how many tickets we can write. It’s about the lives that we save, the crashes that didn’t happen, the injuries that didn’t happen, the tragedies that we don’t have to tell families. Cultural change doesn’t happen overnight.’’

A state law was already in place restricting phone and device use while driving but, as Jackson said, “I would call it a very watered-down version of what we wanted.’’

Little agreed. Using devices while driving was a secondary offense in the state as well as locally. He knows from experience the pitfalls of distracted driving as he was critically injured in a 2008 wreck caused by a distracted driver.

Little, who called the old penalties “completely ineffective, in my opinion,’’ was the driving force behind Huntsville’s hands-free ordinance that stiffened penalties for offenses.

“This is an important topic, and the more discussions surrounding this ordinance, the more it will make our streets safer,’’ Little said. “The number one objective of this is changing behavior. As many of you know, this issue hits home for me.

“Several years ago, my family was involved in a car crash caused by a distracted driver. It was a crash that was 100 percent preventable. And the pain and hardship that that created, not only for me, but really for my family, is not something I would want anyone to go through.’’

Devices prohibited while driving include smartphones, cellphones, e-readers, tablets, laptops, notebooks, and GPS units. The fines are $50 for a first conviction, $100 for a second and $150 for a third, and/or community service.

“This is personal to me,’’ Little added. “So hands free is a primary offense and if a police officer sees you with your phone in your hand, you can pull it over, end of story.’’