Legal Question in Civil Rights Law in Pennsylvania

Hello, I have a few questions I hope you can answer. I attend a community college and I wish to audio record the lecture and group discussions that we have for future listening purposes.

The school has a policy that requires consent of all parties when taking any video, audio, or pictures. Are public places allowed to prohibit legal rights in their policy? I did achieve consent of the professor publicly in front of class and so I assumed that when we were in groups I was allowed as well. I continued recording our group sessions and have had no problems until today when I was questioned with hostility by two of my peers. I stopped recording but I feel I am within my legal right. Am I correct or have I misunderstood something?

Community college is indeed a public place is it not?

Here is what your website says about audio recording:

"you don't always have a right to record what people say. Pennsylvania's Wiretap Law makes it illegal to record private conversations."

But these are not private conversations, we have class discussions and then we split up into smaller groups, but our conversations are still very public. Everyone can hear the conversations going on and the teacher even goes around to each group and jumps into the conversation to try and stir things up a bit.

I am thoroughly confused. Hope you can help.

Thanks,

David W. Cribbs


Asked on 5/27/15, 8:30 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
ANDREA G. TILLIS Law Offices of Andrea G. Tillis

Hello, and Thank you for your questions.

Class sessions are, if fact, private conversations because they are not open to the public. They can be attended only by a "specific group" of students who have registered, paid for the class and have met the prerequisites for attendance in the class. A student's right to continue attending the class is permitted only as long as the student continues to follow the rules set by the school. As such, these sessions can be recorded ONLY if the person recording the session has received the consent of all students in the class who might appear in the video, even if they do not participate in the discussion.

The instructor or professor does not have the authority or the right to waive the consent requirement of any student in the class.

Kind Regards,

ANDREA G. TILLIS

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Answered on 5/27/15, 10:21 pm


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