Crash survivor was likely texting; second this week involving a local driver

By Alexis Stevens and Christian Boone

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A 23-year-old Lilburn man may have been texting when he ran a stoplight in Alabama and caused a fatal accident, police said.

Feliciano Diaz-Perez's Chevy pickup hit the driver side of an Acura driven by Edna Taylor Barker Harris, 59, on U.S. 72 near Athens, Ala. Harris, of Decatur, Ala., died at the scene of the Thursday morning accident in rural Limestone County.

Texting was also blamed in a crash six days ago on Arcado Road and Wayside Court in Lilburn. Soheb Roy, 19, was briefly hospitalized after crashing his Acura into a telephone pole while text messaging a friend. He was charged with improper use of a cell phone while driving.

Charges have not been filed in the Alabama accident, though the state patrol is still investigating

"We believe he may have been texting, but we can't prove it yet," Alabama State Patrol Ofc. Curtis Summerville told the AJC Saturday night.

Investigators will likely subpoena Diaz-Perez's cell phone records, Summerville said.

The Georgia General Assembly is considering a pair of bills that would make texting while driving illegal. One would fine violators $100 and add two points to their license. The other would carry a $300 fine.

Both bills are in committee but are expected to be merged into one and presented for a vote by the full House at some point this session.