Ask A Trooper: What Are the Laws About Talking on a Cellphone While Driving?

Q: What are the laws about talking on a cell phone while driving? And why is it OK for Troopers to talk on their cell phones without a headset, when I can't?

A: The law is, you cannot have a phone up to your ear—it has to be through a speaker or Bluetooth. There are some exceptions to that, however: if you’re hearing impaired, or reporting an emergency. If you're caught talking on your cell phone while driving, it's a primary offense.

If you’re a law enforcement officer on your cell phone, it usually means you’re summoning aide. In the State Patrol, we try to keep that to a minimum. If we’re talking on the phone, it’s a necessary task to perform our job.

It's the same with texting. I don’t do it when I drive, it's illegal.

Distracted driving in general is big cause of collisions. We see collisions when people are doing something inside their vehicle other than focusing on driving--using an iPod or iPad, changing a CD or radio station... eating. Whatever keeps you from doing your task is considered distracted driving and against the law.

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Trooper Guy Gill is the Washington State Patrol recruiter and spokesman for District 1, covering Pierce and Thurston counties. Follow him at @wspd1pio on Twitter. 

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