By: Gerald Connor, May 21, 2025
While Pennsylvania law has barred drivers from reading, writing, or sending text messages while driving since 2012, other handheld cell phone uses were permitted. As of June 5, 2025, a new law that takes effect to ban to all handheld device use while driving.
On June 5, 2025, “Paul Miller’s Law” (Senate Bill 37) will make holding any handheld device, such as a cellphone, while driving on the road illegal. This includes calls, emails, texts, or using the internet. Devices cannot be accessed even at a stop light or traffic jam. The law does not authorize the seizure of an interactive wireless device.
For the first 12 months, the penalty is a written warning. Starting June 5, 2026, the penalty is a summary offense with a $50 fine, plus court costs and other fees. The violation carries no points against your license and it is not recorded on the driver’s record for noncommercial drivers. It will be recorded on a commercial driver’s record as a non-sanction violation. If a driver is convicted of homicide by vehicle and driving while distracted, they may be sentenced up to an additional five years in prison.
There are a few exceptions: a driver may use a mobile device if the driver moves the vehicle to the side of or off a highway and stops in a location where the vehicle can safely remain stationary. The hands-free law allows for an emergency use exception if necessary to communicate with a law enforcement official or other emergency service to prevent injury to persons or property. The law does not ban the use of a GPS device or a system or device that is physically or electronically integrated into the vehicle, or a communications device that is affixed to a mass transit vehicle, bus or school bus.
Distracted driving was the leading cause of auto accidents car in Pennsylvania in 2023. According to the PennDOT, traffic deaths in the state attributed to distracted driving rose from 1,179 to 1,209, in 2023 compared to 2022. There were more than 11,262 distracted driving crashes in 2023, compared to 8,330 alcohol-related crashes.
From a defense perspective, the new law may create additional challenges in automobile and trucking litigation in Pennsylvania. Plaintiffs may contend that a driver’s alleged handheld device use, even if momentary or unrelated to the crash, constitutes evidence of negligence. Defense counsel will need to scrutinize the timing and relevance of such allegations, especially given the law’s exceptions and the fact that initial violations do not carry points or appear on noncommercial driver records. Litigators should also prepare for increased discovery requests seeking phone records or in-vehicle data to support or refute claims of distracted driving.
