Update: Oakland Mayor Jean Quan was spotted using a phone behind the wheel again, and this time she holding the phone to her head while she appeared to be be talking, according to KRON-TV’s Stanley Roberts. Talking on a phone without a hands-free device is illegal, according to state law.

End update.

Oakland Mayor Jean Quan was caught apparently typing on her phone while she was behind the wheel of her car, according to Stanley Roberts of KRON-TV’s People Behaving Badly.

In case you don’t have FB A viewer sent me a photo of what appears to be Oakland Mayor Jean Quan Texting and driving. pic.twitter.com/faDZSyiPk0 — Stanley Roberts (@SRobertsKRON4) June 1, 2014

A viewer spotted Quan tapping away on her phone’s keyboard while she was driving and sent the picture to Roberts, the television reporter said. It is illegal in California for any driver to use a cell phone to text or write email while operating a car, even if they are stopped at a red light. Fines generally start at $160, according to the California Judicial Council.

In a statement provided to The Chronicle after this blog was first published, Quan said that she had been looking up the address for an event — something she said was legal.

“I’m committed to safe driving, and resisting the urge to check our phones from behind the wheel is something we can all be more mindful about,” Quan said in the statement. “I take care to use hands-free technology when I’m on the phone. I believe that in this photo I was looking up an address for an event I was headed to: using navigation apps is legal, but it’s nonetheless important to stay careful on the road. Reminders like this can be helpful, and I’ll be making an extra effort from now on.”

However, Jaime Coffee, a spokeswoman with the California Highway Patrol, said it was not legal to handle a GPS device while driving.

“You can be cited for basic speed laws, there is no safe speed for doing that while driving,” Coffee said, adding that she was unfamiliar with the circumstances of Quan’s case. “The best practice is to set (the address) in your GPS before you get on the road and if you need to do it while you are driving, to pull over … and set your destination.”

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