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Felony to record

bushwacker

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Joined
Jan 4, 2011
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203
Location
pottsboro,texas
I was trashing around on the internet and came across these videos to where at one point they said that it is now a class 1 felony to video police and you can get from 4 to 15 yrs if convicted. maryland is one, does anyone know what the other three are or if there has been more that has jumped on to the jackwagon. ( not knowing how old these vids are but one was around seven months old)
 

Blk97F150

Regular Member
Joined
Dec 21, 2010
Messages
1,179
Location
Virginia
I was trashing around on the internet and came across these videos to where at one point they said that it is now a class 1 felony to video police and you can get from 4 to 15 yrs if convicted. maryland is one, does anyone know what the other three are or if there has been more that has jumped on to the jackwagon. ( not knowing how old these vids are but one was around seven months old)

The issue in Maryland (with the LEO and the motorcyclist) didn't specifically relate to video taping as much as it did AUDIO taping... which put it into a totally different category under 'wire tap' laws.

The short version, as I recall it, the motorcyclist had a helmet camera on and encountered what could have been interpreted as improper police actions against him. His camera was running. Later, after that incident, he posted the video.. complete with audio... on the internet. The LEOs saw it, and decided it was a wire-tap law violation ('felony') because the audio of the officer was recorded without his consent (illegal in MD). Had the motorcyclist not posted the video online, or not posted the audio portion of the video... he probably wouldn't have been charged (speculation).

At least thats my understanding, and recollection of that incident... it may have been slightly different then that.

Here is a good resource for recording laws by state:
http://www.rcfp.org/taping/states.html

Edit to add: Its important to note that audio reording laws vary by state. Some states are a 'one party' state.. you can record as long as you are a party to the conversation. Everyone in the conversation does not need to give consent. Other states, are 'all parties' must know/consent. Check the above listed website for details

Typical disclaimer.... not a lawyer, not legal advice, didn't sleep in a Holiday Inn last night.... lol
 
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mustangkiller

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Sep 15, 2009
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, ,
That's the biggest bunch of BS I've ever heard. How can you "wire tap" someone when there were no phones involved? Also, the officer was in a public street talking with a citizen, where's the reasonalble expectation of privacy?
 

Blk97F150

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Dec 21, 2010
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Virginia

bushwacker

Regular Member
Joined
Jan 4, 2011
Messages
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Location
pottsboro,texas
yeah but there is suppose to be three other states that are doing it too and surely it"s not from the maryland event i was trying to find out which other three or more states it was anyone know?
 

AIC869

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Jan 1, 2010
Messages
105
Location
Prince William Co, Virginia, USA
From what I've been able to find, it varies from state to state. Most states have a state court decision or statutory exception for recording public servants in the performance of their duties, but some do not and have a clear prohibition on any conversation including face-to-face instances.

I can't find a US Supreme Court case that offers a blanket nationwide case law ruling on recording police. Got something we can look at?
 

Guido

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Wilder, Idaho, USA

stuckinchico

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Jun 18, 2009
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Location
Stevenson, Alabama, United States
He was exercising his constitutional rights,” said Michael Risher, an ACLU attorney. “We all -- and the courts have recognized this in California and elsewhere -- have a constitutional right under the first amendment, which protects our right to speak to take video tapes of police officers in public as they do their official duties so that we can create an objective record of that."
 

AIC869

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Jan 1, 2010
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105
Location
Prince William Co, Virginia, USA
Yes, but an ACLU attorney's comments don't carry the weight of law. Additionally, California may be one of those states who permit recording. If it's not a U.S. Supreme Court case, it doesn't apply in the other states. More than once, agencies/localities have lost cases because it conflicted with the "state" constitution or state law. Again, if it's not a USSC case, it doesn't apply to everyone; and I can't find a USSC case that addresses this.
 

AIC869

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Jan 1, 2010
Messages
105
Location
Prince William Co, Virginia, USA
If you're implying that maybe I'm in the wrong country (I'm guessing that's what you meant), it's not a matter of "waiting for permission." Three states expressly prohibit recording - Illinois, Oregon, and Massachusetts. Oregon I've heard is quite nice. Illinois and Massachusetts...well, I suspect the rest of each of these states don't really like how some elements of Chicago and Boston reflect upon them; but that's another matter altogether.

If the state prohibits it, then only a change to the legislation, a binding state court case, or a federal case that addresses it will change things. For those states whose courts have addressed these types of laws and have overturned them as unconstitutional, then yes - it's a constitutional right. You specifically referenced that the Supreme Court (presuming SCOTUS) had ruled on the matter. All I'm saying is cite the case - any case. I haven't found one; and without binding case law there is no blanket coverage.
 

AIC869

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Jan 1, 2010
Messages
105
Location
Prince William Co, Virginia, USA
Nope. And the ACLU just lost a case in January 2011 in federal district court (Northern District of Illinois) while attempting to use this very argument. It wanted to record public conversations of police interacting with citizens without (presumably) consent from either party. This is not a nationwide issue - it's an individual state issue. The ACLU attempted to have Illinois' law struck down in federal court, but the judge ruled this (recording) was not a first amendment right.

I'm not on the side of this law. I disagree with it. If you're a public official in the performance of your duties in public, I don't think you have a reasonable expectation of privacy. However, this isn't a civil rights issue. If you're willing to ignore what may be deemed illegal in a particular state, you can't expect to be able to hold law enforcement officials to every letter of the law in that state as well. Yeah, it sucks; but until those states change their laws or have a binding court case (state or federal), it's the law in that state.

http://www.archive.org/download/gov.uscourts.ilnd.246599/gov.uscourts.ilnd.246599.42.0.pdf
 
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