Father Urging Cell Phone Safety To Prevent Tragedy

Written for kvia.com by Anchor/Reporter Stephanie Valle

EL PASO, TX — Albert Peinado is leading the way when it comes to teaching children the dangers of talking or texting on a cell phone. Unfortunately, it took a tragic accident to make him realize not enough is being done to teach cell phone safety.

Peinado’s teenage son Daniel was in Virginia visiting family last July when he was hit by a car. Daniel was in the middle of a conversation on his cell phone when he stepped out into the street. The impact killed the boy, who was headed into his senior year at Hanks High School that fall.

“It’s not a very easy thing to talk about,” says Peinado.

“But I’m going to do it however many times I need to, if that means potentially preventing another accident.”

Peinado, who is an English teacher at Desert View Middle School, has been working with other teachers and administrators at the school to organize a cell phone safety awareness campaign. Handmade posters promoting safety already dot the walls of the school, urging the preteens to put the phones away when crossing the street. They may only be twelve or thirteen, but Peinado knows it is never too early to get out the message.

“With the amount of cell phones that we have out there now -with the price, more people can afford them, more kids have them, but no one is really telling them how to be safe with them,” Peinado says.

The middle school teacher is taking that task upon himself, organizing an assembly to tie into the safety campaign. The assembly will be held at Desert View before the end of the month.

“I tried to do this not so much for a theraputic reason,” the father told ABC-7.

“I know it’s what he would want me to do and to help prevent, possibly prevent, any other accidents from happening.”

Peinado is looking to expand his campaign and assembly to other schools at their request.