Shriver-gate: Maria Apologizes

California First Lady Maria Shriver apologized after paparazzi snapped her driving while talking on a mobile phone, sans hands-free device. Husband and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger championed the state's "hands-free law," which mandates that drivers must use hands-free devices such as Bluetooth headsets while using mobile phones behind the wheel.

Maria Shriver

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"I'm sorry," Shriver said. "I will be donating my favorite old cell phone to my Women's Conference partner Verizon through their HopeLine program that helps domestic violence shelters. I invite anyone else who wants to recycle their old phone to join me. That's my version of swift action with a higher purpose."
There's been some outrage about Shriver flouting the law that has wrought countless tickets for less-heeled citizens (she was photographed while she was driving a black Cadillac Escalade SUV). Still, you have to snicker at the irony: Paps who often abuse traffic laws -- speeding, unsafe lane changes, trading paint -- to chase down celebs are attacking a first lady for doing something that was legal a few years ago.

And, is it us, or is this law in need in some evolution? Have you ever tried to use a hands-free Bluetooth device such as a Motorola T505? It's like docking the space shuttle. By the time you get hooked up, dial a number and start talking, you could have caused more derailments than the legislature trying to pass a budget. Maybe we need to go phone-free or just leave people and their cellies alone.