Arnie pledges action after wife breaks his law

California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger promised “swift action” after his wife was pictured breaking a law he signed – holding her mobile phone while driving.

Celebrity website TMZ.com posted two photographs showing Maria Shriver holding a phone to her ear while she was behind the wheel. It said one was snapped on Sunday and the other in July.

The website later added a video it said was shot this week near the Schwarzenegger family home.

It shows Shriver holding a mobile phone to her ear while driving a Cadillac Escalade, a large four-wheel drive car. She puts the phone down while the camera is rolling.

The California first lady’s office refused to comment on the pictures.

But on his Twitter feed, Schwarzenegger wrote to TMZ.com founder Harvey Levin: “Thanks for bringing her violations to my attention. There’s going to be swift action.”

However, his spokesman Aaron McLear said that by “swift action” the Terminator actor meant he would ask his wife not to hold the phone while driving.

In a note accompanying the video, TMZ responded to Schwarzenegger’s tweet by saying, “... your scofflaw wife was at it again”. A scofflaw is someone who regularly flouts the law.

The ban on using handsets while driving took effect in July 2008 and requires drivers to use a handsfree device when talking on mobile phones.

The California Highway Patrol has caught people breaking the law more than 150,000 times.

In Los Angeles County, where the Schwarzeneggers live, the superior court has set the fine at about €62 for the first offence and €135 for the next one, meaning Shriver would owe at least €197 in fines and court fees had she been caught by police.

Schwarzenegger has previously praised the anti-phone law and said he warned his then 16-year-old daughter that if she ever broke the law, “she’ll be taking the bus”.