The belief that something good can come out of even the most profound tragedy perhaps applies to some degree to the weeks and months following a pair of horrific, holiday-season crashes that killed an Amherst man and a Brookline woman but also lit a fire under state legislators to take up bills that would help prevent the circumstances under which both died.

Gov. Maggie Hassan signed legislation in July that makes it illegal to use a cellphone while driving, unless the driver is placing a 911 emergency call or using a hands-free device. The bill’s prime sponsor, State Rep. Laura Pantelakos, D-Portsmouth, had been pushing for such legislation for years.

While it certainly isn’t a cure-all to the pervasive problem of distracted driving, the ban, which takes effect July 1, 2015, has been called a solid step in the right direction.

The bill’s passage also strengthens the state’s ban on actual texting while driving, which has been on the books since 2009.

The fact that the late 2013 crashes, which took the life of prominent Amherst resident John Bachman two days before Christmas and 30-year-old Brookline mom Katie Hamilton on Christmas Eve, happened so close to a normally festive, family-
oriented holiday only compounded the pain felt by the victims’ families and friends.

But as difficult as it likely was for them, those close to both victims hoped something positive could come of the dual tragedies, and that their loved ones’ deaths might someday be remembered as a turning point in police and safety officials’ war on distracted driving.

Greg Cullen, the driver who was charged with causing the accident that killed Hamilton, and Mont Vernon resident Travis Hobbs, who was arrested for hitting and fatally injuring Bachman then continuing on without stopping, were indicted several months later but neither was convicted of any charges against them.

At a state Senate hearing in April, at least several legislators and civilians cited Bachman’s death and the role a cellphone played in the accident as a compelling reason the state should crack down on distracted driving.

In the meantime, Bachman’s widow, Marilyn Bachman, was researching ideas to start some type of local anti-texting initiative.

Of all the “campaigns going on all over the country,” Bachman said last spring, the one that caught her eye was a program that hands out “thumb bands,” smaller versions of the multi-colored wristbands worn by individuals who support a particular cause.

“It’s very interesting,” she said. “They’re the same idea (as the wristbands) but you wear them on your thumb, because you typically use your thumbs when you’re texting.”

Come May, the Amherst Junior Womens Club purchased a bunch of the thumb rings from Bachman and brought them to Souhegan High School school resource officer John Smith, who began distributing the red silicone rings to students taking driver education programs.

Smith at the time said the proliferation of cellphone use not only among teens but pre-teens as well has rapidly become a top concern for safety officials.

Texting causes about the same level of driver distraction as does driving while drunk, Smith said. He added that texting while driving has joined inexperience and having too many kids in the car as top distractions teen drivers encounter.

The Amherst Fire Department, of which Bachman was chief for a number of years, got on board as well, creating a local online page that encourages drivers to take a pledge to not text and drive.

Part of the national “It Can Wait” campaign, the page can be accessed at amherstnhfire.org/texting-pledge.

Marilyn Bachman, meanwhile, said that while she appreciates how convenient – and sometimes even life-saving – mobile technology can be, users “need to be responsible … and part of that is teaching.”

“I’m just really hoping we can make people more aware,” she said of the local programs she, the Womens Club and the fire department initiated. “I’m trying to make something good come out of this tragedy.”

Dean Shalhoup can be reached at 594-6443 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com. Also, follow Shalhoup on Twitter (@Telegraph_DeanS).