In case you thought that there wouldn't be any positive impacts from the new cell phone hands-free law, I offer this Los Angeles Times story as evidence of that impact. Apparently, an officer stopped a young man who was talking on his cell phone only to find out that the vehicle he was driving was stolen. Then the fun began.

The incident began shortly before 1 p.m. when an officer stopped a driver in his 20s near Santa Monica Boulevard and Rexford Drive after seeing him talk on his cellphone without a hands-free device, said Lt. Tony Lee, a Beverly Hills police spokesman.

When the officer ran a check on the white Ford Econoline van's license plate, he learned the vehicle had been reported stolen. As the officer got out of his patrol car to approach the van, the suspect drove off, heading west on Santa Monica.

"He was driving recklessly at a very high speed," Lee said.

The man hit at least two cars as he fled. Lee said he did not know if anyone was injured in the collisions but no fatalities were reported.

The man then drove south onto the northbound 405 Freeway at Wilshire, Lee said. California Highway Patrol and Los Angeles Police Department patrol officers and a helicopter joined the pursuit. The chase ended when the man got off the 405 at Olympic Boulevard and was surrounded, Lee said.

"You could tell he was nervous when he got pulled over," Lee said. "But this behavior is just not normal."

I bet that guy won't use his cell phone while driving again! At least not until he gets out of prison.