Keith O'Dell was riding to work at ATK Launch Systems with fellow rocket scientist James A. Furfaro, 38, when the driver of another vehicle sideswiped Furfaro's vehicle, which spun into oncoming traffic and was hit by a truck. The driver of the other vehicle was sentenced for two negligent homicide class A misdemeanors earlier this month specifically because he was texting while he was driving.

Keith O'Dell was designing the Ares rocket that NASA will use to replace the space shuttle, since it was announced that the shuttle program is coming to an end. He had been married to Leila for 30 years and they have a daughter. "He was kind, patient, an incredible genius," she said.

Leila O'Dell said she rarely used a cell phone while driving before her husband's accident. "It was just not something I did," she said. And her husband never did it, she added, "Never, ever."

But even with the new law, Sgt. Jeff Nigbur, a Utah Highway Patrol spokesman, says it will be difficult to enforce. Just because someone is holding a cell phone doesn't mean that person is texting, Nigbur said, noting that dialing 10-digits to make a phone call could easily look like the person is sending a quick text.

If cell phones were banned entirely, the discussion of what's dialing and what's texting wouldn't be necessary, Leila O'Dell said.

The Senate sponsor of the bill, Lyle Hillyard, R-Logan, said that even though it's difficult to tell what someone is doing with a cell phone, the bill addresses the importance of keeping drivers' attention on the road.

"It's a mind-set we're changing," Hillyard said. "If we had to guarantee every law we passed would always be enforced, there wouldn't be many."

Hillyard said that even speeding drivers don't always get tickets. This bill was drafted specifically as a tool to enhance penalties in crashes where text messaging or e-mailing is involved, he said.

Contributing: Rette Speight, Associated Press

E-mail: lhancock@desnews.com