Miss Illinois visit to promote 'Eyes on the Road' campaign

The dangers of distracted driving are all around us, and next week, Miss Illinois, Crystal Davis of Anna, and Illinois State Police, ISP, Trooper Christopher Watson, plan to be on the campus of Rend Lake College at Ina to speak to students about this growing issue.

The college's public information office says that the presentation, originally planned for criminal justice students, has grown with interest from other departments and programs on campus. 

Ron Meek, a criminal justice associate professor at the college, has helped to plan the event, which is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, in the Rend Lake College Theatre.

According to information from the ISP, driver inattention is a factor in more than 1 million crashes annually in North America. The result of these accidents is nearly $40 billion per year in an economic impact.

Miss Illinois 2016 Crystal Davis of Anna plans to speak first about her personal experiences with distracted driving in connection with an accident she was involved in. 

Her Miss Illinois platform, Crystal Clear Driving: Eyes on the Road, will illustrate that distracted driving is not just being on the phone or texting.

After Davis's presentation, Watson, the safety education officer for ISP District 13, is scheduled to provide a presentation for all in attendance. 

Watson said that while the definition of distracted driving is “anything that takes your attention away from the task of safely driving a vehicle,” there will be much more covered about the law and cell phone usage.