Distasio Law Firm Awards Distraction-Free Driving PSA Scholarship to Shelby Harper of Maryville, TN

    TAMPA, FL, July 01, 2020 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Distasio Law Firm, a personal injury firm in Tampa, FL, with offices in Wesley Chapel, FL, has awarded its $2,500 Distasio Law Firm Distraction-Free Driving PSA Scholarship to Shelby Harper, 20, a junior at the University of Tennessee Knoxville.

To qualify for the scholarship, applicants filled out a form and submitted a Public Service Announcement (PSA) video about the dangers of distracted driving.

Harper, of Maryville, TN, submitted a powerful 50-second distraction-free driving PSA that describes a scenario of her driving to see her boyfriend, excitedly answering a cell phone call from him, and dying in an accident. Harper posted this PSA on TikTok and has already accumulated 1,400 views with several comments from teens thanking her for the post.

The Distasio Law Firm represents countless accident victims, but the saddest ones are those caused by the unnecessary act of distracted driving. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that every day 9 people are killed in a distracted driving accident.

Young deaths have lasting effects on entire communities. A young death, as Harper said in her interview is a "story [that] has been taken away when it hasn't yet been written."

Scott Distasio founded this firm in February 2006 to help people who have been injured by someone else's negligence. He is an expert trial lawyer, joining fewer than 1% of Florida lawyers as a Board Certified Civil Trial Lawyer.

Scott Distasio has built his firm around the belief that we make the world a better place by looking out for one another. He's asking teens to do the same with this PSA video scholarship.

Harper believes as Scott Distasio does. She is a history major at UTK, with minors in geography and education and the goal of becoming a teacher.

Distracted driving doesn't have to be the new normal, Harper tells young people. "It can be different."

Harper is the daughter of Theresa and Craig Harper, Maryville, TN.

Students interested in the next awarding of the Distasio Law Firm Distraction-Free Driving PSA Scholarship have until June 1, 2021, to apply.

For more information on our firm, contact us at (813) 730-5885.

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