Question on video/voice recording in Colorado

since9 said:

Really?

"I'm sorry, officer, but unless you have sufficient RAS/PC to place me under arrest, I will not disarm in my own home merely because you're scared for your safety. Perhaps you'd feel safer if I simply closed the door?"

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Nope. I still feel the need to take this one another step farther.

howsabout... "Really? I wouldn't have even opened the door to talk with them..."

But since you went with the line that you did, do me one favor. Ask those cop buddies of yours what happens to people who don't comply with the police when they are given specific orders while at gunpoint. Then ask them what happens to folks who, while at gunpoint, try to "simply close the door" on them.

PLEASE tell me the answers you get to those two simple questions, and then tell me that you would have carried out those actions.

I've been meaning to get myself a recorder and have been procrastinating getting one for too long now. Anyone know which is a good recorder?

My suggestion is, be very careful in doing it. Yes you have every right to record without the other persons consent, but if that person is a cop they can always make a false allegation, such as arresting you under the wiretapping law, and claim "that's what I interpreted it to say" as why they arrested you and miraculously your recording equipment will be damaged or destroyed and the recording no longer available.
Remember they can also arrest you, take your equipment, destroy it, and do anything they want to you. So I suggest you make sure it's not easy to access for even you. Which can be done and still have easy access to the data stored.

A good site for accurate information on recording is http://www.rcfp.org/can-we-tape/
I have found them to be exceptionally accurate in comparison to other sites.

mahkagari said:

I'm of the opinion that the latter is the cause of the former.

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F350 said:

WELL..... Most of us have never been criminally assaulted by a thug, FBI stats say crime is on the decline..........BUT; we all carry guns daily (or almost daily).

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Howdy Pardner!
Let's consider what really is true about crime statistics.
Our courts are overcrowded and judges face a loaded docket each and every day.
Prosecuters notch their briefcases with wins in court to make their reputation, especially if they have political aspirations.
The one thing they do not want is for every case to go to trial. In fact, they're delighted if none go to trial, because in a high percentage of cases, the defendant would be acquitted (assuming a decent attorney at his side!).

So what do you have? What has gone up dramatically over the past decade or two?
COPPING A PLEA!

Plea bargains have replaced justice and paved the way to keep dockets managable, reduce case load on prosecutors, and ensure them an impressive record of convictions because too many people are willing to plea to a lesser charge than stand ground in court.

Denver, in particular, is heinous in this regard. They'll take felony abuse of a child and plead it down to.................. are you ready for this.........
Agricultural Trespass!!!!!

Read that again for the impact of that statement.... they'll plead down molestation of a child to agricultural trespass.
But so far as the FBI is concerned... why... child abuse cases are going down in Denver.

So you have a person who steals a car, chases his girlfriend to a remote location and assaults her. Beats her half to death, then dumps the car.
Does he get charged with the assault? no. Does he get charged with car theft? no.
He pleads to the lesser charge of stalking. Really?

Hey... it makes the crime rate go down! At least on paper.
The truth is, if each criminal act were properly reported and analyzed,
Crime is skyrocketing. Your odds are increasing daily that you'll be confronted by a criminal.
The only surefire defense is to be ready and able to defend yourself.

You can't rely on protection from the very people who are cooking the books to make themselves look better on paper when it comes down to your own flesh and blood.

Blessings,
M-Taliesin

M-Taliesin said:

Howdy Pardner!
Let's consider what really is true about crime statistics.
Our courts are overcrowded and judges face a loaded docket each and every day.
Prosecuters notch their briefcases with wins in court to make their reputation, especially if they have political aspirations.
The one thing they do not want is for every case to go to trial. In fact, they're delighted if none go to trial, because in a high percentage of cases, the defendant would be acquitted (assuming a decent attorney at his side!).

...snipped...

You can't rely on protection from the very people who are cooking the books to make themselves look better on paper when it comes down to your own flesh and blood.

Blessings,
M-Taliesin

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To be fair, there is another side of this. The police know that this is going on in the courts. So when they arrest someone, they load up the charges with things that sometimes doent even make sense, just to give the prosecuter more room to wiggle and more charges available to drop in the plea. For example, someone is carrying concealed without a permit. When someone sees it and cops come, they charge him with carrying concealed, disorderly conduct, domestic violence (assuming his wife is there with him), and possibly even fellony menacing.

Either way...the statistics are only as believable as the people who put them together. Personally I do not trust the FBI.

I concur with your assessment, James B, in that some police departments will do this. However, I know the policies of our local police department, and they do not do this. As it was explained to me: Such practices tend to be self-defeating over time. It's better to charge the person only with those items which can be proven in court. Over-charging not only requires a lot more paperwork, but it also wastes the time of the prosecutor and the court. Also, it's counter-productive with respect to the judges. If a department as a solid reputation for only leveling legitimate charges that can stick in a court of law, there will be a lot less plea-bargaining, and a lot more trust by the justice system that the police department's charges are accurate and true.

If I was a cop, I'd rather be honest and ethical in my work and personal life and not fear anyone recording me than to be any different and have a lingering thought "what if someone saw this?", and have to confiscate the recording gear of others in order to make sure no one HAS seen anything that could be considered questionable.