SAYBROOK TOWNSHIP – In the first four days of 2026, troopers from the Ohio State Highway patrol’s Saybrook post cited 30 people for distracted driving out of a total of 44 enforcement stops – or 68 percent of drivers they pulled over.
Lt. Timothy Grimm, post commander, said the death of a fellow trooper last October has spurred the post to redouble its efforts to get drivers to put their phones down.
Trooper Nicholas Cayton was killed on Saturday, Oct. 16, on State Route 11 in Mahoning County, near Canfield, while assisting a disabled semi-truck.
A second truck rear-ended his cruiser, pushing it into the disabled vehicle and striking the truck’s driver.
Cayton was pronounced dead at the scene, with the semi’s driver also injured, prompting renewed calls for the public to obey Ohio’s Move Over Law.
“We’re going to be making a more focused effort,” Grimm said.
Ohio’s distracted driving law, effective since April 2023, bans holding or using handheld electronic devices for texting, browsing, video or calling while driving, with consequences including license penalty points (2-4) and fines up to $500 for repeat offenses within two years, plus possible license suspension.
It’s a primary offense, meaning law enforcement can conduct a traffic stop for it, but exceptions exist for reporting emergencies or holding the phone to the ear for a call, though inputting GPS or dialing must be done before driving.
“(The phone) can’t be supported by any other part of the body,” Grimm said. “It can only be held to the ear with one hand.”
