By Mary O’KEEFE

If you thought holding your cellphone while driving was okay, even if you weren’t speaking on it and only doing something like checking maps, you would be wrong. 

California has had a law since 2017 prohibiting handheld phone use while driving; however, many drivers thought they were still allowed to hold their phone as long as they weren’t texting or talking. That confusing loophole in the 2017 law was closed on June 3. 

The California Court of Appeal ruled in People v. Nathaniel Porter that simply holding a phone is in violation of the law. 

Porter was convicted of a traffic infraction for holding his phone while driving. He stated that while driving he was viewing a mapping application on his cellphone. Porter and the police officer who cited him both agreed he was holding the phone, but the question before the courts was the definition of the term “operating,” which was written in the 2017 bill. 

Porter had appealed his conviction to the Appellate Division of the Superior Court, which reversed the traffic judge’s decision and dismissed his conviction. The court decision hinged on what the act of operating a cellphone actually included – talking, emailing, browsing the internet or playing video games, for example. The court concluded simply observing GPS directions did not constitute the kind of active manipulation that would trigger an infraction. 

The case then went from the Superior Court Appellate Division to the Court of Appeal, which rendered a different judgment. The same argument was made by Porter; however, this time the court ruled the term “operating” as prohibiting all uses of a handheld phone while driving. 

The bottom line now is there is no longer any wiggle room; it is against the law to hold a cellphone while driving. Period. Drivers cannot hold a cellphone in their hand, even if they are not touching the screen. Phone use for navigation, music or calls must be properly mounted in the vehicle. And no – you cannot glance down at your phone, not even at stop signs. 

Legally the only way drivers can use their cellphones is with voice commands on a mounted phone. 

Citations for this violation have a base fine of $20 for the first offense and then increase to $50 for subsequent offenses. Those are the base fees; administrative and court fees can considerably increase that charge and range from $162 to $300 for the first offense. 

“Distracted driving can take many forms, but cellphones are the number one distraction. Distracted driving can lead to collisions, injuries and death, in addition to citations for traffic violations. Drivers are 23 times more likely to be involved in a collision if they text while driving. The best advice is to focus on your driving and the road ahead. Distracted driving takes a person’s eyes off the road, hands off the steering wheel and minds off of driving. Most collisions occur in less than three seconds, based on perception and reaction time. It takes the average person 4.6 seconds to read or send a text message. Just three seconds of texting while driving at 65 mph is equal to driving 100 yards, or the length of a football field, blindfolded,” according to California Highway Patrol.