Can a Dictaphone be used as evidence in Court?

[corcoran42]

e.g
If someone was receiving, i dunno..Threatening, Homophobic, Racist or Defamation of Character words would a Dictaphone (which has recorded any and all of this) be eligible in a Court of Law?

Im just curious that's all.

Thanks guys.

[jerard]

e.g
If someone was receiving, i dunno..Threatening, Homophobic, Racist or Defamation of Character words would a Dictaphone (which has recorded any and all of this) be eligible in a Court of Law?

Im just curious that's all.

Thanks guys.

I have no idea what a Dictaphone is but in the US a recording is only admissible in court if the person knows they are being recorded. Recording a phone call is a violation of Federal Wiretap laws.

[barclay76]

In the UK this kind of evidence is only acceptable in court if the person being recorded has been made aware that they are being recorded and has given permission. No idea about the US

[breasal]

The U.S. federal law allows recording of phone calls and other electronic communications with the consent of at least one party to the call. A majority of the states and territories have adopted wiretapping statutes based on the federal law, although most have also extended the law to cover in-person conversations. 38 states and the D.C. permit recording telephone conversations to which they are a party without informing the other parties that they are doing so.

12 states require, under most circumstances, the consent of all parties to a conversation. Those jurisdictions are California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Washington.

It is illegal under all jurisdictions to record calls in which one is not a party.

http://www.callcorder.com/phone-recording-law-america.htm