Courtney Sanford was driving her Toyota Corolla to work and listening to the hit song “Happy”. And to share the moment on Facebook Courtney decided to snap a “selfie” with her phone.
Texting While Driving
Courtney did not stop the car to take the picture. She opened her phone’s photo application, framed the shot, smiled, snapped the photo, and then posted it to Facebook while still driving. Courtney successfully submitted her post, but her car veered across the center median into oncoming traffic traveling at 45 miles per hour.
Tragedy From Distraction
Courtney’s Corolla collided with a 24,000 pound recycling truck; the car left the road, impacted a tree and burst into flames.
Heartache For Her Family
In an instant, Courtney was kiIIed. She worked in the healthcare industry and was a college graduate with two degrees. She was laid to rest after four days after the crash by her parents, grandmother, and her two brothers. And she was only 32 years old.
Posted Selfie
Courtney posted her selfie to Facebook at 8:33 AM. The Police and Fire crews received the first 911 call one minute later, at 8:34 AM.
Cell Phone Retrieved
Courtney’s cell phone was retrieved from the wreckage with her Facebook post still on the screen at the scene of the accident. “The happy song makes me HAPPY” was her last words.
Dangers Of Texting While Driving
Police Lieutenant Chris Weisner made the grim comparison between Courtney’s acident and the many public service advertisements aired to warn against the dangers of texting while driving when discussing the accident with the media.
Ads Warn Of Texting And Driving
“We’ve all seen these graphics advertisements on TV, this was real life” said the Lieutenant Weisner.
Unfortunate Tragedy
The accident of this young lady has been widely reported on television, in newspapers, and online. It is just one of many similar stories that happen everywhere.
Prime Of Her Life
Courtney was a young, attractive woman in the prime of her life. As it was so totally preventable her death is made all the more tragic.
Here is the video of Lieutenant Weisner’s interview along with an ad warning against texting while driving.
Selfies Becoming Commonplace
One of the most common things in our society is Selfies, we all take them, and some of us even do so while driving. Please stop if you take selfies while driving as there are too many flower bouquets planted along the sides of our highways already.
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