Dozens of distracted drivers ticketed during police sting

WEST BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – More than a hundred drivers were stopped and dozens of them received tickets for distracted driving in West Bridgewater Tuesday.

As part of a 3-hour long sting, police officers in unmarked cruisers sat along Route 106 watching for drivers who were texting or otherwise distracted. When they spotted someone, they would call down to uniformed officers who would flag down the drivers and pull them over.

The drivers are given an opportunity to explain themselves or show their last text, and while some came clean others were less open about their activities.

Police Chief Victor Flaherty said his officers do this every few months to save lives on the road, but drivers don't seem to be learning.

“We hope we're out here saving some lives by showing enforcement and making people think twice. I mean, it's so dangerous out here. I mean, people just need to drive," he said.

One driver admitted to reading song lyrics while behind the wheel, another said they were looking at navigation and switching their music. One driver even admitted to playing Pokemon.

"They get in their car and they're doing everything they're not supposed to do. we need to drive. we're causing a lot of accidents. the stats are going through the roof and it's not getting any better,” Flaherty said.

Officers in West Bridgewater have a similar sting every few months, they even post about it ahead of time to warn drivers. But the tickets, $105 for texting and $35 for other distractions, keep coming.

"For six years we’ve been educating, we’ve been telling the public what we’ve been doing. it doesn't seem to matter to anybody," Flaherty said.

Police said one driver was on FaceTime when she was pulled over, and even showed the person on the other end of the call the officer she was answering to.

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