May 17, 2022; Columbus, Ohio, USA; State Highway Patrol trooper Kevin Riley issues a speeding ticket along I-270 near Easton Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Mandatory Credit: Doral Chenoweth-The Columbus Dispatch News Excessive Speed
Los Angeles, California – A state appeals court ruled Tuesday that simply holding a phone to look at a map while driving is a violation of California’s hands-free law, even if the driver isn’t tapping, swiping, or otherwise manipulating the device.
The decision by the Sixth District Court of Appeal adds legal clarity—and legal risk—for millions of drivers who have come to rely on smartphone navigation. According to the ruling, the Legislature intended for the law to apply broadly, encompassing the full spectrum of distractions modern mobile devices can cause. “Allowing a driver to hold a phone and view a mapping application, even if not touching the phone’s screen, would be contrary to the Legislature’s intent,” the court wrote.
The case originated when authorities ticketed Nathaniel Gabriel Porter for holding his phone in his left hand while following directions from a GPS app. Porter challenged the $158 fine, arguing that he wasn’t “operating” the device as defined by law—he was merely looking at it.
Initially, Porter won. A judge in Santa Clara County’s appellate division ruled in his favor, determining that “operating” a phone required some form of active manipulation. Just holding the phone and observing the screen, the court said, didn’t rise to that level.
But the Court of Appeal disagreed, reversing the decision and reinstating the violation. In its opinion, the court pointed to the 2016 legislative overhaul of the state’s cellphone law, which expanded the definition of “using” a mobile device while driving. Lawmakers had responded to growing concerns about the scope of distracted driving in the smartphone era, emphasizing that cellphones were no longer just for calls or texts but now functioned as “pocket-sized computers.”
That shift prompted lawmakers to write a more expansive law—one aimed not just at how phones are touched or used, but at how they divide a driver’s attention. According to the Assembly’s bill analyses at the time, the revised statute was designed to prohibit the use of a phone “for any purpose” that might cause distraction.
The court’s ruling reaffirms that understanding, effectively barring handheld use of phones even for passive activities like viewing a navigation app. Drivers can still use phones if they’re mounted and operated with a single swipe or tap—but holding the phone, regardless of interaction, is now firmly off-limits.
