Woman Who Lost Daughter To Texting While Driving Speaks Out
By: Jenne Anderson
Updated: January 30, 2013
AUSTIN-- Jeanne Brown known first-hand the heartbreak that can come from texting while driving.
"The highway patrolman said that as she was entering her last text message, she went off the road," said Brown as she described the accident that claimed her daughter's life. "And things happened so quickly she didn't even have time to respond."
17 year old Alex Brown passed away that November day back in 2009.
And ever since, her family's made it their mission to put an end to texting while driving.
"After she (Alex) died we started researching it, and found out that nearly 6000 people had died the year before and no one was talking about it," said Jeanne. "So we thought, well we've got to start talking about it and we've got to educate these kids to help them understand."
To hit the issue even harder, the Brown family is spearheading the Alex Brown Memorial Act along with Representative Tom Craddick.
If passed, the bill will make it illegal to text and drive in the state of Texas.
"It saves lives," explained Representative Patricia Harless. "Not just the lives of the passengers, but also the lives of the people that are in the cars next to the person doing the texting and driving.
While there was an overwhelming feeling of support for the bill in Austin on Tuesday, this isn't the first time it's been brought to the table.
Governor Rick Perry shot it down in 2011, saying it would be too difficult to enforce.
But lawmakers feel the outcome will be much different this time around.
"It's easy to be following a car and see it swerve in your lane, and get up there and see that they're actually making a call or texting," said Representative Harless.
And while the Browns push the bill forward, they tell us this isn't about Alex anymore, but a way to protect every single person on the road.
"Alex is gone," said Jeanne. "We can't bring her back. This is about those kids that aren't going to be Alex. These are the kids that are going to be here for their future."
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"The highway patrolman said that as she was entering her last text message, she went off the road," said Brown as she described the accident that claimed her daughter's life. "And things happened so quickly she didn't even have time to respond."
17 year old Alex Brown passed away that November day back in 2009.
And ever since, her family's made it their mission to put an end to texting while driving.
"After she (Alex) died we started researching it, and found out that nearly 6000 people had died the year before and no one was talking about it," said Jeanne. "So we thought, well we've got to start talking about it and we've got to educate these kids to help them understand."
To hit the issue even harder, the Brown family is spearheading the Alex Brown Memorial Act along with Representative Tom Craddick.
If passed, the bill will make it illegal to text and drive in the state of Texas.
"It saves lives," explained Representative Patricia Harless. "Not just the lives of the passengers, but also the lives of the people that are in the cars next to the person doing the texting and driving.
While there was an overwhelming feeling of support for the bill in Austin on Tuesday, this isn't the first time it's been brought to the table.
Governor Rick Perry shot it down in 2011, saying it would be too difficult to enforce.
But lawmakers feel the outcome will be much different this time around.
"It's easy to be following a car and see it swerve in your lane, and get up there and see that they're actually making a call or texting," said Representative Harless.
And while the Browns push the bill forward, they tell us this isn't about Alex anymore, but a way to protect every single person on the road.
"Alex is gone," said Jeanne. "We can't bring her back. This is about those kids that aren't going to be Alex. These are the kids that are going to be here for their future."
Like Jenne Anderson's page on Facebook!
