Police Officer Caught Texting While Driving Motorcycle [Photo]

Tempe, AZ – A police officer was recently photographed texting while piloting his motorcycle on US 60.

The incident reportedly took place while the officer was doing around 80 mph down the highway. Justin Argall, the man who snapped the picture, said the cop was on his phone for several minutes.

“I kind of looked over and I saw it and it dawned on me what I just saw and I looked again and that’s when I took the picture,” Argall explained to 3TV.

Tempe Police Department spokesman Steve Carbajal said officers are currently being trained to avoid these modern distractions in hopes of avoiding future incidents. According to ABC 15, the police officer caught texting while driving his motorcycle has been reprimanded.

The department released the following statement:

The Tempe Police Department does not condone this type of distracted driving. In fact we have instituted specific policies prohibiting texting while operating police vehicles. Texting while driving or performing any activities that take away attention from the driving task are extremely dangerous and should be avoided whenever possible. Training will be provided to reduce the chance of our officers putting themselves in similar dangerous situations in the future.

The Temple Police Department decided not to release the name of the office who was caught texting while driving. Carbajal said the case is now considered closed.

Although sending text messages while piloting motor vehicles is illegal in certain states, MSN reports no such laws are currently in place in Arizona.

According to statistics, roughly 1.3 million cellphone-related crashes took place in 2011. While adults are guilty of texting while driving, the problem is a lot more serious among teenagers between the ages of 16 and 17. Around 34 percent admit to sending text messages while driving.

You can check out a photo in question below.

Uh oh. Pic of Tempe police officer allegedly caught texting while riding his motorcycle for miles. This ok with you? pic.twitter.com/RhsehAALpY

— Troy Hayden (@troyhaydenfox10) June 28, 2013

What do you think about the police officer who was caught texting while doing around 80 mph on his motorcycle? Should his punishment be more severe?

[Top Image via Shutterstock.com]