The Distracted Driving Epidemic — Why It’s No Longer Just About Texting. In 2008, a Boulder, Colo. entrepreneur named Scott Tibbits was to meet with the vice president of an engineering firm. Tibbits arrived to the Denver office ready to discuss a potential project, but the engineer never made it. Tibbits later learned that the man, a husband and father of two, was killed just hours before their appointment when a 16-year-old driver ran a red light while distracted by his phone.