Overview

• The Court of Appeal for the sixth appellate district held on June 4, 2025 that holding a phone to view navigation constitutes illegal “operation” under California’s handheld cellphone law.
• The ruling reverses a Santa Clara County Superior Court appellate division decision and restores Nathaniel Gabriel Porter’s $158 traffic fine.
• California’s 2016 amendment expanded “operating” a cellphone behind the wheel to cover any handheld function, reflecting legislators’ aim to curb distracted driving.
• The court emphasized that merely glancing at a mapping application without touching the screen breaches the law and contradicts the Legislature’s original intent.
• Drivers may still use phones secured in mounts with a single touch, but all other handheld interactions while driving are now prohibited.