District Attorney Zappala launches ‘Protect Your Privilege’ campaign
Sending or reading a text takes your eyes off the road for five seconds. That’s like driving the length of an entire football field with your eyes closed at 55mph, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
And in that time, life can change forever.
That’s the message the District Attorney is sending to young drivers in Allegheny County in a new campaign.
“I’ve seen people watching TikToks and Instagrams in their cars while driving,” Central Catholic High School Senior Andrew Wallander said. “They take it lightheartedly, and they don’t understand the effects of what can happen. And it’s just really scary as a driver to see that.”
For an interview with Channel 11, Wallander stood in front of a wrecked truck that’s sitting outside of Central Catholic High School all this week as part of the school’s Destructive Decisions Week.
“You know 400 people die from distracted driving, and he said that’s more than homicides,” Wallander said.
The “he” Andrew is talking about is Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala.
“In an instant,” Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala said. “Life is a very fragile thing, and it’s gone.”
Zappala visited his alma mater to launch the “Protect Your Privilege” campaign where he spoke to more than 700 9th-12th graders.
“I am a vehicle, and I am traveling 25 miles per hour,” Zappala said. “I have a cellphone on my lap. I look down. I look up. I’ve just killed everyone from row A to row J.”
Zappala also showed videos of crashes caused by distracted driving and explained that about 3,500 people die every year because of distracted driving.
As a father of four boys, it’s personal to Zappala.
“A lot of times you stay up at night, and you just think where are my sons,” Zappala said. “You want to know that they’re going to come home.”
The District Attorney started this campaign at Central but hopes to take this campaign to as many districts as he can in Allegheny County.
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