LEE’S SUMMIT, Mo. (KCTV) - It’s been one month since the hands-free law has been enforced in Missouri. Since Jan. 1, Missouri State Highway Patrol has been cracking down on people who are using a phone while driving.

“It’s something we’re taking pretty seriously because it’s causing injuries and even fatalities in our state,” said Missouri State Highway Patrol Corporal Justin Ewing.

The hands-free law went into effect on Aug. 28, 2023. The law makes it illegal to make any physical contact with a phone or electronic device while driving. MSHP reports there were 1,200 warnings issued statewide throughout the 16-month grace period.

Since enforced in January, Missouri State Highway Highway Patrol has issued 33 citations and 15 warnings to drivers in the Troop A area around the KC Metro.

“More than just because we’re telling you not to do it, we know that it’s causing serious injury and even fatalities in our state and we want people to be safe while driving,” said Ewing.

Ewing said many drivers in the state of Missouri are paying more attention to their phones than the roads. It’s a problem he said MSHP is seeing from the state’s major highways to its city streets. That’s where the hands-free law comes in where drivers could be fined anywhere from $150 to $500 for traffic violations related to distracted driving. If the violation happens within a construction or school-zone, offenders will have to pay the maximum fine of $500.

“You can’t be driving while on your phone, it’s completely unsafe. This could have been a catastrophe,” said driver Edwin Chavez.

This law is something Chavez said is personal. Two months ago a driver drove through an intersection and T-boned him. Chavez said the person behind the wheel admitted to being on the phone at the time of the accident.

“At the end of the day, everyone wants to go home. No one wants to see loss on the other side so it’s not worth it. Not over a device,” he said.

Another driver said a recent car accident at her sister’s school was caused by someone who also was allegedly on the phone.

“I mean there’s times where I could’ve rear-ended somebody because I was not paying attention. I was looking down at my phone and my mom is big, like stay off your phone while you’re driving because you never know what could happen,” said Gabriella Denby.

According to Missouri State Highway Patrol, 106 people were killed by a distracted driver last year and thousands more were injured. Drivers could face either a misdemeanor or felony in distracted driving cases resulting in property damage, injuries or death.

“We would hate to ever see someone be involved in a crash where they either took the life of another person or had their life taken for something so easily preventable,” said Ewing.

The hands-free law is a secondary violation meaning a driver has to be stopped for other reasons that may be caused by distracted driving such as lane violations or failure to use a turn signal. More information about the hands-free law could be found here .