A $368 distracted ticket handed out to a B.C. driver pulled over for using both headphone earbuds has been upheld in provincial court.
Surrey, B.C., resident Patrick Henry Grzelak originally appealed the ticket not because he didn’t have his headphones in, but because the phone they were plugged into was dead.
According to B.C. RCMP Traffic Services, it's okay to drive with one earbud in, however, wearing two is grounds for a distracted driving ticket.
#DYK that you may only drive with ONE ear bud in? 2 buds=$368 for use electronic device + 4 points #TicketTuesday pic.twitter.com/4esA8SS1dN
— BCRCMP Traffic (@BCRCMPTraffic) June 20, 2017
Court documents reveal that Grselak’s dead iPhone was in the centre cubby hole of his dashboard, with the earbuds plugged into each ear.
The phone wasn't in his hands or his lap, it wasn't transmitting music or a video, and he wasn't using it to talk to someone or navigate.
Nonetheless, Judicial Justice Brent Adair found that Grzelak was illegally using the phone.
"In my view, by plugging the earbud wire into the iPhone, the defendant had enlarged the device, such that it included not only the iPhone (proper) but also attached speaker or earbuds," state court documents.
"Since the earbuds were part of the electronic device and since the earbuds were in the defendant's ears, it necessarily follows that the defendant was holding the device (or part of the device) in a position in which it could be used, i.e. his ears."
A distracted driving ticket currently costs $368 for a first infraction, plus a one-time $210 insurance premium and four penalty points on the driving record.
