As you may remember, in October we posted about Southern California resident Cecilia Abadie, who was pulled over by the California Highway patrol for speeding and being cited for wearing Google Glass while driving.

Google Glass is Google’s early version of a head-mounted computer display. A small square monitor sits above the right eye, just out of the normal line of vision. To view information on the display like a map or text message, the wearer must look up. Google Glass defenders claim Glass is safer to use while driving than a smartphone since it can be voice controlled and you only have to glance up to view the Glass display. 

Ms. Abadie was sited under California vehicle code 27602, which prohibits operating a video-display in front of the driver’s head rest where it can distract the driver. Ms. Abadie appeared in San Diego traffic court on January 17th for speeding and wearing the face-mounted technology while driving. It is only illegal to wear the device while driving if it is operational. The charges were threw out, as there wasn’t enough evidence to prove that Google Glass was turned on. Concidine and his partner, Gabriel Moore, are the traffic ticket attorneys who defended Abadie in court. “While the ruling was a big win for Abadie, it doesn’t necessarily answer the question everybody wanted: Is it legal to drive down the road wearing Google Glass while it’s operating?” said William Concidine.

“There is no law that specifically says Google Glass is illegal. Each officer has to take each case on a case-by-case basis,” said CHP Public Affairs Officer Jake Sanchez. Google Glass wearers in California can still be pulled over and cited for wearing the head-mounted displays while driving. Whether they get a warning or a ticket will be up to the individual officer. Getting a charges dismissed will then be up to individual traffic court judges. Three states have already drafted laws that specifically ban Google Glass while driving: Delaware, West Virginia and New Jersey.

On Google’s Glass FAQ page, the company warns: “Most states have passed laws limiting the use of mobile devices while driving any motor vehicle, and most states post those rules on their department of motor vehicles websites. Read up and follow the law!”

Best regards
und viele Grüße aus Charlotte
Reinhard von Hennigs
www.bridgehouse.law