Wrangell Sentinel -

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) – The Senate Judiciary Committee plans to hear legislation aiming to boost enforcement of Alaska’s texting while driving ban. It would reduce the penalty from a misdemeanor to a violation, making it possible for officers to issue citations to distracted drivers.

A spokesman with the Alaska Bureau of Highway Patrol has testified that troopers are less likely to charge someone under current law requiring proof that a driver is distracted by a screen device.

The bureau’s Lt. David Hanson says it can be difficult for a trooper to document a driver using a mobile device. He says...