Local law enforcement officials are uncertain how they will enforce a new statewide texting ban for drivers once Gov. John Kasich signs it into law.

But, they are certain it is long overdue.

“It has been a long time coming,” Butler County Sheriff Richard K. Jones said. “Will it stop people from texting while driving? Probably not, but at least we can educate them about it. You cannot deny it is dangerous.”

Butler County Sheriff’s detectives said a May 3 crash in Milford Twp. that claimed the lives of two Hamilton County teenagers may have been the result of driver inattention caused by cellphone texting.

It appears, according to investigators, that driver Miranda Lane, 17 of Colerain Twp., was texting on her cellphone in very close proximity to the actual time of the crash. Lane’s 17-year-old passenger Mathilde Jessen also was killed in the crash.

“People need to learn if they are going to text, they need to pull off the road and do it more safely,” Jones said. “(The law) is something that is needed and hopefully we’ll be able to save some people’s lives.”

Ohio will be the 38th state to ban texting while driving and the first in the country to prohibit drivers younger than 18 from using any electronics device while driving.

The bill would ban all drivers from using hand-held electronic devices, though it is tougher on teens. Texting or using an electronic device while driving would be a primary offense for anyone under age 18.

Minors could be fined $150 for a first offense and have their license suspended for 60 days. Repeat offenders could face a fine of $300 and a one-year license suspension.

For adults, it would be a secondary offense meaning they could be ticketed for typing emails or instant messages only if they were pulled over for another offense.

The Ohio House approved the measure on Tuesday. The Senate passed it earlier this month. Gov. Kasich is expected to sign it into law soon.

“If it does nothing else, it will bring attention to stop it,” Middletown police chief David VanArsdale said. “And that will be worth it.”

Democratic Rep. Nancy Garland, the bill’s co-sponsor, said it would make Ohio’s roads safer. She recounted stories brought to her by constituents, fathers and wives whose relatives died from distracted drivers who were texting.

“It is time to end these tragedies,” Garland, of New Albany, told her colleagues.

The Ohio Fraternal Order of Police supports the legislation. However, the group’s president has said the organization would have preferred that texting be a primary offense for all drivers because it would have been easier to enforce.

“You’re asking a law enforcement officer to determine at 30 mph whether someone is under 18 or not, so that’s a challenge,” said Jay McDonald, Ohio FOP president.

Still, McDonald said the measure is a good first step in cracking down on the problem of distracted driving among teens. “That’s who we think are the most vulnerable drivers,” he said in a recent interview.

Staff Writer Lauren Pack and The Associated Press contributed to this story.

Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2852 or Skip.Weaver@coxinc.com.