Police won’t fine Elon Musk for illegally livestreaming while driving

Kristen Radtke / The Verge; Getty Images

When Elon Musk livestreamed a drive through Palo Alto, California on Friday afternoon, he was holding his phone — which is plainly and clearly illegal under California law. But the Palo Alto Police Department won’t be issuing a fine, it tells The Verge, because police didn’t witness the crime themselves.

“Had an officer observed the driver with the phone in their hand, they could have issued the driver an infraction ticket for violating California’s handsfree law,” writes Palo Alto PD Captain James Reifschneider.

“As no officer witnessed it happening in person at the time of occurrence, though, no ticket is forthcoming,” he told me via email.

There’s no question that Musk was in control of the vehicle: he was forced to stop his “Full...

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