O'Keefe and Giles broke many laws in their 'investigation'

oligarhy

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Tue Sep-15-09 05:08 PM
Original message

O'Keefe and Giles broke many laws in their 'investigation'

Edited on Tue Sep-15-09 05:15 PM by oligarhy

California:

O'Keefe just released his recording of an ACORN employee and a private citizen, in which, video and audio recording were made and then released to the public.

California law - It is a crime in California to intercept or eavesdrop upon any confidential communication, including a telephone call or wire communication, without the consent of all parties. Cal. Penal Code �� 631, 632. It is also a crime to disclose information obtained from eavesdropping.

Eavesdropping upon or recording a conversation, whether by telephone or face-to-face, when a person would reasonably expect their conversation to be confined to the parties present, carries the same penalty as intercepting telephone or wire communications.

Precedent has already been set in CA - A California appellate court ruled that a network�s broadcast of a news report that used excerpts from secret recordings during two patient examinations violated the privacy rights of the physician, who had a reasonable expectation that his communications with his patients would be private and not recorded. Lieberman v. KCOP Television, Inc. 110 Cal. App. 4th 156 (Cal. Ct. App. 2003).

Just so everyone is clear on my thinking, I think the ACORN meeting could be considered private as it was in a room with the doors closed.

The hidden video was also illegal (the video part) - However, an appellate court has ruled that using a hidden video camera in a private place does violate the statute. California v. Gibbons, 215 Cal. App. 3d 1204 (Cal. Ct. App. 1989).

Here are CA's penalties - A first offense of eavesdropping is punishable by a fine of up to $2,500 and imprisonment for no more than one year. Subsequent offenses carry a maximum fine of $10,000 and jail sentence of up to one year. Intercepting, recording, and disclosing information each carries a separate penalty.

There are also civil penalties - Anyone injured by a violation of the laws against disclosure of telegraphic or telephonic messages can recover civil damages of $5,000 or three times actual damages, whichever is greater. Cal. Penal Code � 637.2(a). A civil action for invasion of privacy also may be brought against the person who committed the violation. Cal. Penal Code � 637.2.
(source: http://www.rcfp.org/taping/states/california.html)

Massachusetts

It is a crime to record any conversation, whether oral or wire, without the consent of all parties in Massachusetts. The penalty for violating the law is a fine of up to $10,000 and a jail sentence of up to five years. Mass. Ann. Laws ch. 272 , � 99.
(same source)

I didn't even look up the Federal statutes regarding this.

I think that O'Keefe and Giles could find themselves in some personal lawsuits as well as criminal penalties. Lawsuits usually include depositions and we might find out who funded these 'investigations'.