New Jersey and Connecticut are both members of the Drivers License Compact (DLC) meaning that once you are convicted of the driving while talking on a cell phone offense by the NJ courts they will inform the CT Department of Motor Vehicles.

As you should be aware it is illegal in both NJ and CT to talk on a cell phone without a hands free device. Operation of a motor vehicle while using a hand-held mobile telephone to engage in a call or while using a mobile electronic device when vehicle in motion is against the law in Connecticut per CT statute 14-296aa(b).

The CT Department of Motor Vehicles typically assigns points to a person's driving history if they are convicted of a violation but not if you make a payment in full and dispose of your case. The DMV does not state whether points are different if the violation is from out of state so we contacted the CT Driver Services Division to find out if out of state violations go on your CT driving record and/or are assigned points. The CT DMV representative stated that only if you hold a Connecticut Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) would the NJ cell phone violation appear on your Connecticut record.

So if your license is a regular license, Connecticut will not transfer the out of state violation to you record or assign points normally. The only time Connecticut would take action on this violation is if you do not pay the ticket and New Jersey asked the CT DMV to suspend your license for non-payment.

Here is more information that may be helpful to your regarding the cell phone laws of both your home state of Connecticut and New Jersey where you were ticketed.

CT law states that hand-held cell phones or mobile electronic devices may not be used while operating a motor vehicle in Connecticut. CT laws defines a mobile electronic device as any hand-held or other portable electronic equipment capable of providing data communication between two or more people. Included are devices for text messaging or paging, personal digital assistants, laptop computers, equipment capable of playing video games or digital video disks, or equipment on which digital photographs are taken or transmitted.

A mobile electronic device in CT does not include audio equipment or any equipment installed in the vehicle to provide navigation, emergency, or other assistance to the driver or video entertainment to passengers in the vehicle’s rear seats.

Drivers 18 years of age and older need hands-free accessories to legally use cell phones or mobile electronic devices while operating a motor vehicle in CT. New drivers who are 16 or 17 years of age are restricted from using any type of cell phone or mobile electronic device while driving, even with hands-free accessories. Effective August 1, 2008, a conviction of violating this law will result in at least a 30-day suspension of your driver license and may require you to attend an operator retraining class if you have other violations.

There are exceptions to this law include which basically says that a cell phone may be used by a driver of any age in emergency situations and by a driver over the age of 18 if the driver is performing official duties in certain occupations, such as a peace officer or firefighter.

As for New Jersey, Senate Bill 1099 was signed into law by the NJ Governor in November 2007 and went into effect March 1, 2008. The law makes it a primary offense for motorists to talk on or text message with a hand-held wireless telephone or electronic communication device while driving. New Jersey is the fourth state to make using a hand-held cell phone while driving a primary offense and the second to ban text messaging while driving.

The NJ 2003 cell phone law had it as a secondary offense to use only a hand held cell phone while driving but now this new law makes it a primary offense. As a “primary offense,” a motorist in NJ can now be stopped and cited by law enforcement solely for talking on a hand-held cell phone or text messaging.

The fine for violating the new NJ cell phone law is $100, revised from the previous fine of no less than $100 or more than $250. Unchanged from the old law, violating the new cell phone provisions will carry no motor vehicle points. Although it is discouraged, drivers in New Jersey may use a hands-free device if it does not interfere with standard safety equipment. “Use” of a wireless phone and any other hand-held communication device includes, but is not limited to, talking or listening to another person, texting, or sending and receiving electronic messages.

The reason so many states have put cell phone laws into effect is that NHTSA research shows that driving while using a cell phone can pose a serious cognitive distraction and degrade driver performance. The NHTSA estimates that driver distraction from all sources, including the use of cell phones and electronic communication devices, contributes to 25 percent of all police-reported traffic crashes.

It does not appear your driving privilege would be affected in either Connecticut or New Jersey due to the cell phone ticket in NJ however the NJ courts and CT DMV could tell you for certain.

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