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February 8, 2012

Letter: Lapse of judgment can occur at any age

To the editor:

A couple of days ago this old wreck (71 years old) read in The Salem News reports on two accidents that occurred on the same day in Beverly.

In one report the driver's age (84) was part of the headline. In the other, the driver's age (47) was a throw-in to the story.

In one accident the police were still determining the cause.

In the other, the cause was quite clear — a driver ran a red light while gabbing on her cellphone.

When you read the two stories you could come to the conclusion that the age of the driver was the cause of one accident and the actions of the driver caused the other.

One of the reasons cited by people who would restrict licenses for older drivers is "impaired judgment behind the wheel."

Given the facts provided to the News by the police, I ask which driver displayed impaired judgment behind the wheel?

Given that talking/texting while driving has become a huge cause of collisions, I ask which age group, those in their 80s or their 40s, is most likely to be engaging in this too frequently lethal exercise of lack of judgment.

Brendan Walsh

Salem

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