In most states, driving while talking on a phone is now illegal. It's a secondary offense here, which means the cops aren't likely to pull you over just for that, but, if you are doing anything else "wrong" at the time, it will simply increase the girth of your ticket.
We also apparently have a law that says it isn't illegal for law enforcement to do it.
This is one of those "exceptions" that I just don't get. And it's one of the reasons that civilian folks eye the authorities with mistrust. Believe me, I get it. Before my man became "the man", it totally irked me when I saw cops speeding for no reason, ignoring traffic laws, talking on their phones while driving. It just doesn't sit well with people. Even if they have a reason we don't know about. And even though I now know that those cops might really need to run a red light or speed through town without their lights on, while blabbing on a phone, it still irks me.
Now that my husband is a cop, he's become pretty aware of what the public perception is. In fact, I even bought him a bluetooth device for his stocking this Christmas so he'd have it as soon as he was issued his own patrol car. He doesn't want to be one of those guys who puts his toe on the line of the law just because he can.
Really, it's more than that. Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should. And if you do it, rest assured that someone with an opinion, a video camera, and a following is watching. Whatever your reason, it will probably be misinterpreted and exploited all over youtube.
It just isn't worth it to invite more scrutiny than is already aimed at cops.
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