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Criminal Law Keyed to Gershowitz
United States v. Paniagua-Garcia
Citation:
813 F.3d 1013.Facts
An Indiana police officer saw a driver (the defendant) that was holding a cellphone in his right hand. His head was bent toward the phone, and he “appeared to be texting.” The defendant denied that he was texting, and the officer never explained what created the appearance of texting as distinct from any one of the multiple other uses of a cellphone by a driver. An examination of his cellphone revealed that it hadn’t been used to send a text message at the time the officer saw him fussing with the cellphone.
He was convicted of violating Ind. Code § 9-21-8-59(a), which prohibited texting or emailing while operating a motor vehicle. He appealed.
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