Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: Employee Secretly Taping Conversations With Employer

It is a misdemeanor to surreptiously record conversations and that evidence is not admissible. However, your employer should not be allowed to get away with the sexual harrassment. It may be provable in other ways even if it is your word against his/hers. I would be interested in looking into the matter. Please contact me directly at (619) 222-3504.

Re: Employee Secretly Taping Conversations With Employer

It has been several years since reviewing the law in this area. However, it is my recollection that taping evidence of the commission of a crime is permitted and it would be admissable in court. Other taping without the knoweledge of all parties is a misdemeanor and the tape is not admissable in court. Further there is a civil penalty, at that time $500, per taping incidence.

There is not enough information in your statement to determine whether the incident you described would be exempt. However, it seems unlikely that it would be exempt.

Re: Employee Secretly Taping Conversations With Employer

I believe there is an exception to the criminal statute prohibiting taping or recording conversations, when both parties are not aware of the recording, to gather evidence of a criminal act.

When I've encountered situations in a criminal case in which a conversation was recorded secretly, I've not become aware of any criminal charges being filed for the recording. I always discuss the pros and cons of recording conversations in secret to gather evidence when my clients bring the subject up. I'm not aware of any statute in California that excludes information from a trial either civil or criminal that is recorded in violation of the statute.

A number of years ago Florida had such an exclusion and the first instance was the recording of a murder in which the victim identifies his murderer, and which under their statute was not admissable at the criminal trial.

I don't believe California ever made the mistake of excluding such evidence.