US EditionCalifornia Court Rules This Common Driving Practice Is Illegal
- On Tuesday, a California Court of Appeal ruled that holding a cellphone to view navigation directions while driving violates state law in Santa Clara County.
- This ruling follows the 2016 state law aimed at reducing distracted driving by prohibiting drivers from holding or using phones while driving.
- The case centered on a driver who received a $158 citation for holding his phone while looking at a GPS app without interacting with the screen, and initially won a ruling in his favor at a lower court.
- The court emphasized that the law’s intent includes all phone use for any purpose while driving, noting phones act as "pocket-sized computers" with many distractions.
- This ruling broadens California’s distracted driving law by clarifying that holding a phone, even without interaction, violates the law and may impact thousands of drivers.
14 Articles
14 Articles
State Appeals Court Rules Driving While Holding a Cell Phone For Navigation Purposes is Illegal – California Globe
The Sixth Appellate District of the California Court of Appeals ruled earlier this week that the current state law of prohibiting holding a cell phone or other handheld device while driving is also to include holding them for GPS, map, and navigation purposes. According to People v. Porter, this latest state law addition stems from a simple $158 ticket. In 2023 in Santa Clara County, Nathaniel Gabriel Porter was pulled over for “viewing a mappi…
Man enraged by $158 ticket takes it to court - he made it worse for all drivers
A SIMPLE traffic ticket just rewrote the rules of the road for every driver. What started as a $158 fine led to a landmark court ruling expanding how the state interprets distracted driving laws. GettyThe law in question bans handheld use of phones while driving (stock image)[/caption] The decision was handed down Tuesday by the California Court of Appeal for the Sixth Appellate District. It centered on a driver who got pulled over in Santa Clar…
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