Monday, January 24, 2011
Be Careful What Conversations You Record
Posted by Joe Johaneman in "Apple Talk" @ 12:30 PM
"Citizens recording their public interactions with police sure seems like the kind of thing that would prevent corruption, harassment and bad behavior by cops. Just don't do it in Illinois, where it's punishable by up to 15 years in prison."
Twelve states have "two-party consent" eavesdropping laws. Three of them, Maryland, Massachusetts and Illinois don't make an exception for recording police conversations. The ACLU has been working to make recording police officers legal in all states. So far, the courts haven't been very friendly to their cause in Illinois. Be careful who you record with your iPhone(or any other smartphone), and where. I couldn't find a list of states with two-party consent laws, but if you have a link to such a resource, share it in the comments.
