Court Ruling: Cell Phone Ban Applies, Yes, Even at a Red Light

A court ruling Monday answered a question many California drivers have undoubtedly wondered themselves since the state’s cell phone ban went into effect in 2007.

A driver who is stopped at a red light, idling, or stuck in traffic is considered “driving,” according to the 3-0 ruling (PDF).

Carl Nelson -- a Richmond, Calif., driver -- who was ticketed after a police officer saw him using his phone at a stoplight in December 2009, argued he was not “driving” because his car was stopped, according to court documents.

In court, Nelson based his argument on a 1991 Supreme Court ruling that said the term “drive” requires proof of “volitional movement,” which means actions that are intentional and under control.

The ruling also shows Nelson used hypothetical situations to argue, that in certain situations, the reasons for making a phone call are sensible and present “no conceivable risk,” like a parent who is stopped indefinitely behind a major accident and has to call her child with an important message.

The First District Court of Appeal in San Francisco didn’t buy Nelson's argument, calling the 1991 court case and Nelson’s case “materially different.”

In the 1991 ruling, police arrested a man on suspicion of drunk driving, who they found asleep and slumped over his steering wheel. The man had his engine running and was legally parked against a curb of a residential street.

The Supreme Court threw out the arrest, stating that driving requires “volitional movement.”

In Nelson’s case, Judge James Lambden ruled that even though he was paused, Nelson was “driving” on the road, while the driver in the 1991 case was “parked” on the street.

“Drivers paused in the midst of traffic moving all around them would likely create hazards to themselves and public safety by their distracted use of their hands on their phones and devices,” stated the opinion. “And would likely cause further traffic delays.”

Lawmakers were trying to improve public safety when writing the law, the judge said.

While reports do vary, the California Highway Patrol, which writes about two-thirds of the distracted driving tickets issued in the state, said it has seen a difference on the road since the cell phone law went into effect in January 2007.

The number of fatal car accidents due to inattention went from 119 in 2008 to a total of 82 in 2010, said Vince Ramirez, a California Highway Patrol spokesman.

Nelson’s attorney, Darren Kessler said he does plan to appeal to the state’s high court.

"Before the law was very clear, you're either moving or you're not," Kessler said. 

"Now it's not."

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