Snow-covered city street with buried cars
The New York Vehicle and Traffic Law (VTL) imposes monetary penalties and driver violation points for using a cell phone to talk or text while driving. More information is available here. The two relevant statutes are VTL § 1225-c and VTL § 1225-d. Using a Mobile Telephone to Engage in a Call VTL § 1225-c(2)(a) provides: “[N]o person shall…
Read More New York’s Cell Phone Driving Laws and Rules
Stick figures running, one fallen with stars
Your best bet for avoiding a cell phone-related ticket in New York? Put the thing down while the car is running – even when stopped at a red light. One court (the Town Court of the Town of Brighton, Monroe County) recently held that a car stopped at a red light is still “in motion”…
Read More Car Is “In Motion” When Stopped at Red Light For Purposes of New York’s Cell Phone Driving Statute
Person sprawled on boardwalk above hole
What does it mean to “engage in a call” for purposes of New York’s general cell phone driving statute, VTL § 1225-c(2)(a)? That section provides: ”[N]o person shall operate a motor vehicle upon a public highway while using a mobile telephone to engage in a call while such vehicle is in motion.” Specifically, does using an iPhone’s “Siri” feature to…
Read More Activating “Siri” Feature Did Not Amount to Using Phone to “Engage in a Call” Within the Meaning of New York’s Cell Phone Driving Statute
Yellow pedestrian crossing warning sign
Everyone knows that drivers who text and talk on their cell phones do so at their peril. Consequences range from tickets and driver license “points” to death. But a recent decision by a Brooklyn trial court in Miller v. Lewis, 40 Misc.3d 490, highlights the dangers of cell phone use by pedestrians. (More information on this issue can be…
Read More Struck Pedestrian’s Cell Phone Records Admissible