Recording conversation

[as2000]

What is the name of your state? Arizona

I found out that my wife has been using a voice recorder hidden under a bush in my backyard to record my voice while I talk on my cellphone. Can she do this?

 

[JETX]

I found out that my wife has been using a voice recorder hidden under a bush in my backyard to record my voice while I talk on my cellphone. Can she do this?

Of course she can. Now, the question becomes what does she plan on doing with the information recovered in her recordings.

 

[CdwJava]

Yep. She has apparently made the recordings, so it is clear that she CAN ... but, what do you want to do about it?

Are you going to call the police and have her arrested?

Is she using the calls to blackmail you? Is she planning to use them in divorce proceedings?

The next step you take depends on what the recordings are going to be used for. If you have proof that the surreptitious recordings exist, and do no mind copies being turned over to the police and later being entered into the public record at trial, then give the cops a call and have at it.

 

[as2000]

I guess what I meant was is this legal to do? I mean since I was in a "public" place and not within the confines of my home, is this legal.

 

[JETX]

I guess what I meant was is this legal to do? I mean since I was in a "public" place and not within the confines of my home, is this legal.

"Under Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 13-3005, consent is not required for the taping of a non-electronic communication uttered by a person who does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy for that communication. See definition of “oral communication,” Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 13-3001."

Your side of the conversation, as you describe it, would NOT be an 'electronic' recording since it would be your 'live' voice.
As for the 'reasonable expectation of privacy', I would assume your backyard would have that expectation... but then your subsequent post says it was "in a public place".

 

[Zigner]

"Under Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 13-3005, consent is not required for the taping of a non-electronic communication uttered by a person who does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy for that communication. See definition of “oral communication,” Ariz. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 13-3001."

Your side of the conversation, as you describe it, would NOT be an 'electronic' recording since it would be your 'live' voice.
As for the 'reasonable expectation of privacy', I would assume your backyard would have that expectation... but then your subsequent post says it was "in a public place".

Actually, since the WIFE also has every right to be there, can there be an expectation of privacy as it relates to his wife? Sure, maybe Joe Public would be beyond that expectation...but not Mrs. OP

 

[CdwJava]

I guess what I meant was is this legal to do? I mean since I was in a "public" place and not within the confines of my home, is this legal.

It is only a crime if you choose to report it.

Are you going to call the cops on her? Or, are you trying to figure out if you have a way to suppress evidence in divorce proceedings or at a criminal trial? If the state of your relationship is such that she is recording your conversations in the yard, I suspect that no matter the reason, it is time to consult an attorney. Either the relationship is over, or, you might be in danger of being blackmailed or prosecuted (depending on the nature of the conversations).