Jasmin Gomez-Deaquino, 19, and Edgar Deaquino, 14, of Salt Lake City, were both killed on Interstate 215, according to a recent Deseret News article "Two Die in Car Accident on I-215."

The accident occurred near 2300 South, where the Honda Civic Jasmin and Edgar were traveling in had broken down and had come to a stop in the far right lane. As they were about to get out and push the car to the side of the road, a car driven by a 30-year old employee of a Salt Lake security business failed to slow down and slammed into the Deaquino’s Honda. According to Cameron Roden of the Utah Highway Patrol, the 30-year old driver might have been using a cell phone at the time of the accident.

My condolences are with the Deaquino Family as they cope with this difficult situation.

It seems that we are seeing more and more automobile fatalities involving drivers distracted by cell phones, and this is totally unacceptable. A recent University of Utah study found that talking on a cell phone while driving is comparable to driving with a blood-alcohol level of .08 percent. It is time for Utah to revamp its cell phone laws to prevent such needless wrongful death accidents.

The insurance company for the security business may try to diffuse responsibility for this accident by arguing that the Deaquino vehicle should have stopped in the shoulder, but car trouble can happen at any time, and its safe to say, that if the employee for the security business was traveling at a safe speed and was not on his cell phone, this tragic accident would not have happened.

The victims' family would be best served in consulting with an experienced personal injury lawyer qualified in car crash cases to fully understand their rights and options. They need an attorney who will conduct a complete and prompt assessment of the crash and explain what compensation might be available.