Recording dashcam audio in Florida.

AndrewG

New Member
Joined
Dec 14, 2015
Messages
1
Reaction score
1
Country
United States
Hello, I have recently put a dashcam that records audio in my car and have been surprised to find out it might be illegal to record audio in my own car.

Would a very small sticker on the doors or side windows of my car stating that "This vehicle is equipped with an audio/video recording device, by approaching and/or entering this vehicle you consent to recording." be enough?

Would they even be necessary? I've been told that recording audio on private property is illegal, but yet according to information found here it is legal for me to record all the audio I want as long as it is on my property. https://www.rcfp.org/reporters-recording-guide/state-state-guide/florida

"All parties must consent to the recording or the disclosure of the contents of any wire, oral or electronic communication in Florida. Disclosing communications in violation of the state’s statute is prohibited. Both criminal and civil penalties exist for such infractions. The state’s video voyeurism law bans the secret recording underneath or through the clothing of individuals without their consent, or in areas where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy."

"All parties to any confidential communication must give permission to be recorded, according to Florida’s eavesdropping law. Fla. Stat. § 934.03(2)(d). Under the statute, consent is not required for the taping of an oral communication spoken by a person who does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in that communication"

My property= property that is mine, I own.
Humans want to protect what they own, this is obvious.
Logically someone would be expected to set up recording devices to help monitor their property.
Obviously there is no "reasonable expectation of privacy" when you are on someone else's property.
Obviously there is no "reasonable expectation of privacy" if you are on the street (public property) and are loud enough to be heard inside of a running vehicle.

This is really confusing for me, can someone with legal experience help me here? I want to be able to legally...
Record audio/video in my own car without having to verbally ask permission from everyone in/around my car
Actually own the audio/video file made by my camera (be able to upload the video online)

Can this be accomplished with a warning sign/sticker on my car?
How small can the sign/sticker be? I don't want to ruin my car by having an annoying legal notice along the side.
 
Interesting question. I'm not a Florida attorney, but I've thought about this issue. Maryland has a similar statute that requires that all parties to a private conversation consent to the recording.

My opinion is that recordings of audio outside of the vehicle are not private and would not require consent from people outside the vehicle (e.g. if the dashcam picks up a conversation of people walking down the street). You would not need a sticker on the outside of the vehicle to warn people outside the vehicle---people rarely have an expectation of privacy when in public spaces.

Inside the vehicle, however, I would say you would most likely need permission from your passengers before you can record audio. People usually have an expectation of privacy inside a private passenger vehicle. A sticker warning the passengers that they are being recorded may not be enough because the passenger(s) may not see the sticker, may not be able to read/understand the sticker, and may not give you consent.

I've thought about this in the context of an ride-share driver who may want to protect him/herself, and I don't know if they are allowed to record audio without consent. I know public buses sometimes record video and audio, but arguably, buses are not as private as passenger vehicles. Based on what I think about privacy of passenger vehicles, I personally would not record audio inside the vehicle unless I had informed consent from all passengers.

Hope this is somewhat helpful.
 
So if you don't 'disclose', or otherwise use the AUDIO from the video, what is the real problem?

If you are worried and want to save a video clip, and there is no audio of any worth to you, why not delete the audio?
 
So if you don't 'disclose', or otherwise use the AUDIO from the video, what is the real problem?

If you are worried and want to save a video clip, and there is no audio of any worth to you, why not delete the audio?

You're right---you could delete the audio afterward. However, I think OP is worried about the legality of recording audio. Whether one uses the audio or not, or whether it may ever surface that someone was recorded without their consent, recording the audio inside the vehicle without all the passengers' consent may be illegal in Florida.
 
Esqu1re is correct. By recording in a 2 party consent state without both parties being aware or forewarned, you have met the elements of the crime. The fact that you erase the audio or intended to erase the audio is not relevant...the fact that you recorded audio is all that is needed to meet the elements of the crime.
If you concerned, just tell your passenger "Please keep your arms and legs inside the vehicle at all times and by riding in this vehicle you give consent to be recorded both in any format whether it be audio or video." Then smile at them....you warned them and they wont believe you...but they'll likely think you are bonkers. Bonkers or not, your covered.
 
Just to muddy up the waters a bit here's how the audio recording issue is in Michigan. (My bolding to highlight the interesting portion.)

Michigan law makes it a crime to "use[] any device to eavesdrop upon [a] conversation without the consent of all parties." Mich. Comp. Laws § 750.539c. This looks like an "all party consent" law, but one Michigan Court has ruled that a participant in a private conversation may record it without violating the statute because the statutory term "eavesdrop" refers only to overhearing or recording the private conversations of others. See Sullivan v. Gray, 342 N.W. 2d 58, 60-61 (Mich. Ct. App. 1982). The Michigan Supreme Court has not yet ruled on this question, so it is not clear whether you may record a conversation or phone call if you are a party to it. But, if you plan on recording a conversation to which you are not a party, you must get the consent of all parties to that conversation. In addition, if you intend to record conversations involving people located in more than one state, you should play it safe and get the consent of all parties.

Source: http://www.dmlp.org/legal-guide/michigan-recording-law
 
Hello, I have recently put a dashcam that records audio in my car and have been surprised to find out it might be illegal to record audio in my own car.

Would a very small sticker on the doors or side windows of my car stating that "This vehicle is equipped with an audio/video recording device, by approaching and/or entering this vehicle you consent to recording." be enough?

Would they even be necessary? I've been told that recording audio on private property is illegal, but yet according to information found here it is legal for me to record all the audio I want as long as it is on my property. https://www.rcfp.org/reporters-recording-guide/state-state-guide/florida

"All parties must consent to the recording or the disclosure of the contents of any wire, oral or electronic communication in Florida. Disclosing communications in violation of the state’s statute is prohibited. Both criminal and civil penalties exist for such infractions. The state’s video voyeurism law bans the secret recording underneath or through the clothing of individuals without their consent, or in areas where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy."

"All parties to any confidential communication must give permission to be recorded, according to Florida’s eavesdropping law. Fla. Stat. § 934.03(2)(d). Under the statute, consent is not required for the taping of an oral communication spoken by a person who does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in that communication"

My property= property that is mine, I own.
Humans want to protect what they own, this is obvious.
Logically someone would be expected to set up recording devices to help monitor their property.
Obviously there is no "reasonable expectation of privacy" when you are on someone else's property.
Obviously there is no "reasonable expectation of privacy" if you are on the street (public property) and are loud enough to be heard inside of a running vehicle.

This is really confusing for me, can someone with legal experience help me here? I want to be able to legally...
Record audio/video in my own car without having to verbally ask permission from everyone in/around my car
Actually own the audio/video file made by my camera (be able to upload the video online)

Can this be accomplished with a warning sign/sticker on my car?
How small can the sign/sticker be? I don't want to ruin my car by having an annoying legal notice along the side.

Hi,

We have a lot of info about this on our website.
https://southfloridacorruption.com/Articles/

The Laws have changed in the last couple of years.
It depends on who you are recording, and the expectation of privacy they have.
Police, Public officials, ect.. Have no right to privacy when on duty.

for others:

Say you are outside your home, and someone is talking or screaming load enough for anyone to hear,
They have no expectation of privacy.
However, if you are having a conversation with someone and they think they have a reasonable expectation of privacy, then you have a problem.

I only let friends in my car, so no problem.
However, if your worried about that; Every state say's even on the phone, as long as you tell them that there "may" be a audio recording in progress at the beginning, which your recording will evidence, then you're good.

If it's your vehicle or any other circumstance, and they say they object, then tell them either get out, or shut up.
they are on notice and you have no obligation to stop the recording.
A great FREE APP TO HAVE IS CALLED BAMBUSER.

Bambuser (recommended)
Broadcast low-latency live video and audio
to the web using 3G or Wi-Fi! View incoming
chat messages, broadcast in public or in
private, geotag your broadcasts and share
to many social networks.
Cost: free
More: http://bambuser.com/broadcasts
YOU CAN RECORD AND SEND THE VIDEO TO A WEB SERVER, ALL FOR FREE.
SO IF THE POLICE OR SOMEONE ELSE DESTROYS YOU PHONE, YOU STILL HAVE THE VIDEO ON THIER SERVER. FREE
The 11th Federal Circuit Court, In Florida, Gives you this right.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Welcome S.F.C. :) and thanks for the info. With there being so many different laws it is good to have info from every State.

South Carolina is a two-party consent state, and implied consent through the use of signs is allowed in places of public access like stores, restaurants, and Taxis but not in places where there could be expectations of privacy where acknowledged consent is required. In the latter cases if consent is denied you are required to immediately end the recording. Casual unintended audio recording can be allowed as evidence as long as there is other verification of whose voice it shows. Illegal audio recording is a State crime here and I do not know if political subdivisions (counties and cities) may enact their own laws regards this.

If you are worried and want to save a video clip, and there is no audio of any worth to you, why not delete the audio?

This is not a good idea anywhere because the media has been altered and it can now easily be ruled inadmissible for use as evidence in it's entirety. Evidence tampering is usually a criminal violation, not a civil matter and it can land you in jail :eek: Even if the video is allowed as evidence there will now be a question in everyone's mind of whether there has been other unknown alteration occurring. You do not want any doubt regarding the absolute accuracy of the evidence you present in court. If you must have audio, capture it on a separate device so that your video stays unassailable.

This information came from a Municipal Court Judge who was my friend and Attorney prior to his death some years ago and is still accurate AFAIK.


Phil
 
Back
Top