Where NJ is synonymous with falling asleep at the wheel

New Jersey was the first state to pass a law against drowsy driving. The “Maggie Law” was enacted in 2003 and states that if a driver kills someone after not sleeping for more than 24 hours, that driver faces a vehicular homicide charge.

The law was named after Maggie McDonnell, who was killed in 1997 by a driver who hadn’t slept for 30 hours. The driver was fined just $200 because the jury couldn’t take the driver’s fatigue into account.

Remember the tragic truck accident that sent comedian Tracy Morgan to the hospital in critical condition and took the life of fellow comedian James McNair? It happened more than a decade after Maggie’s Law was passed and involved a trucker who hadn’t slept in 24 hours. The driver was charged an appropriate fee but received a PTI (pre-trial intervention).

It brought renewed attention to Maggie’s Law and the dangers of drowsy driving. Experts say a 24-hour lack of sleep carries the same risk as driving under the influence with a blood sugar level of 0.08.

So has all the attention in New Jersey done any good?

A new study ranked states by the percentage of drowsy driving deaths between 2018 and 2022. It was conducted by the personal injury firm Anidjar & Levine.

The worst state with the highest percentage was Wyoming. In first place is Wyoming, where 8.37% of traffic fatalities are due to drowsy driving.

You’ll be happy to know that New Jersey was ranked 42nd. Not very many states were safer than ours. Only 0.38% of our deaths were due to drowsy driving.

I know there are too many regulations and laws in New Jersey, but Maggie’s Law is a good law that we can live with – in every sense of the word.

The opinions expressed in the post above are solely those of Jeff Deminski, host of the New Jersey 101.5 talk show.

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