Anyone who uses a cell phone while driving should stop by Anthony Ceraso's body shop at the corner of Main and East Maple and check out the red car. Make that a mangled red car, with school books and other items still inside. The car is accompanied by a sign with a crossed-out cell phone.
"It just gives awareness that this is what could possibly happen if you use a cell phone or text while driving," Ceraso said.
The vehicle was given to the auto body man by the family of a 19-year-old Bridgeport woman killed on I-95. "You shouldn't be able to use a cell phone in your car, period," said Ceraso, who's owned his shop for 35 years. "If any good comes out of ... us displaying this and having people more aware ... it's time well-spent," he said.
The shocking display coincides with New Canaan Police stepping up enforcement against distracted drivers. First Selectman Jeb Walker plans to investigate whether police can confiscate cell phones from ticketed motorists.
Ceraso said he's received calls and visits from more than a dozen people since the car was put on display Tuesday. Kids walking along Main Street have taken pictures or asked Ceraso about the car.
Tanaijah Carrafiello and Janaya Wright, 12-year-old seventh-graders at Saxe Middle School, seemed to get the message. Both took pictures of the wreckage on Friday and vowed not to use their phones while driving, once they get their licenses.
"It's horrible," Janaya said. Tanaijah agreed, saying, "I'm not dying for anybody on the phone."
Ceraso plans to move the crumpled car to New Canaan High School so more young people can see it.
Click here to follow Daily Voice and receive free news updates.
