An employee of Mohammed's Electrical Company of San Juan yesterday was fined $1,000 after she pleaded guilty to driving while using a cellphone. Standing before magistrate Wendy Dougdeen-Bally in the Port-of-Spain Sixth Court was Fatima Mohammed, 35, of San Juan, who apologised for her actions. Mohammed was charged via summons by Cpl Miguel Edwards of the Port-of-Spain Traffic Branch.
The court heard that on July 4, Edwards was heading east along the Churchill-Roosevelt Highway near the Aranguez flyover, when he saw Mohammed talking on her cellphone while driving in slow-moving traffic. Admitting she had done so, Mohammed explained she had been making a "quick call" to the nursery to say she was on her way to collect her infant child.
Questioned by the magistrate, Mohammed said she owned a wireless headset but had not been wearing it at the time since she had not charged it. Telling her she had taken a chance, Dougdeen-Bally said: "Accidents happen when someone is not paying attention and it only takes a moment for something to go wrong." Mohammed was ordered to pay the fine by today or serve three months' simple imprisonment.