R v Kazemi

R. v. Kazemi

2013 ONCA 585
Court of Appeal for Ontario — Goudge J.A. (Laskin and Watt JJ.A. concurring) | September 27, 2013

Background

On April 26, 2010, Khojasteh Kazemi was driving home from work when she stopped at a red light. Her cell phone had been sitting on the seat beside her, but when she braked for the light, the phone dropped to the floor. She bent down and picked it up — and that's exactly when a police officer spotted her with the phone in her hand.

Kazemi was charged under section 78.1(1) of the Highway Traffic Act for driving while holding a hand-held wireless communication device. The Justice of the Peace convicted her and imposed a $200 fine. But on appeal to the Ontario Court of Justice, the appeal judge overturned the conviction, ruling that there must be "sustained physical holding" of the device — and that momentary handling wasn't enough to meet the legal standard.

Issues

1. What does "holding" mean under section 78.1(1) of the Highway Traffic Act?
2. Is momentary contact with a cell phone sufficient for a conviction, or must there be sustained physical holding?

The Meaning of "Holding"

The Court of Appeal firmly rejected the appeal judge's interpretation. Justice Goudge ruled that "holding" simply means having a cell phone in your hand — period. There's no requirement that the holding be "sustained" for any particular length of time. The ordinary dictionary definition of "hold" means "to have a grip on" or "to support in or with the hands," and nothing suggests a time requirement.

The court applied the modern approach to statutory interpretation, looking at the words in their context and the purpose of the legislation. The Countering Distracted Driving and Promoting Green Transportation Act was designed as "eyes-on-the-road, hands-on-the-wheel legislation" with a clear goal: complete prohibition on having a cell phone in your hand while driving. As the Minister of Transportation explained during legislative debates, "driver should focus on one thing and one thing only: driving."

The court emphasized that requiring "sustained" holding would create practical problems: How long is long enough? How could police effectively enforce such a standard? Most importantly, it would undermine road safety by allowing brief moments of distraction that could still cause accidents.

Key Takeaway

Any physical contact with a cell phone while driving — even for a split second — violates Ontario's hands-free driving law.

Don't assume that quickly grabbing a dropped phone or briefly touching your device is legally safe. The law creates a complete prohibition, and the courts will enforce it strictly to protect road safety.