Cellular jammer user causes interference to local PD Radio System...

[N4DES]

and gets a visit and citation from the FCC:

http://www.fcc.gov/eb/FieldNotices/2003/DOC-291892A1.html

FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

ENFORCEMENT BUREAU

SOUTH CENTRAL REGION

Miami Office

P.O. Box 520617

Miami, FL 33152

June 29, 2009

Scott Hidnert

Miami, FL

NOTICE OF UNAUTHORIZED OPERATION AND

INTERFERENCE TO LICENSED RADIO STATIONS

Case Number: EB-09-MA-0101

Document Number: W200932600058

On June 15, 2009, the Miami Office received a complaint from the
Miami-Dade County Police Department ("MDPD") regarding interference to a
frequency used by MDPD police officers. Agents from the Miami Office
confirmed by direction finding techniques that radio signals on 867.0625
MHz were emanating from 720 NW 103rd St. Miami, FL. The agents from this
office confirmed that these radio signals emanating from a cell phone
jamming device were interfering with MDPD communications. During the
inspection of the equipment, you admitted to owning and operating the cell
phone jamming device. Upon completion of the inspection, you voluntarily
relinquished the equipment to the MDPD officers.

Persons operating or using radio transmitters must be licensed or
authorized by the FCC, pursuant to Section 301 of the Communications Act
of 1934, as amended. In addition, radio transmitting equipment must comply
with FCC rules. Section 333 of the Act prohibits willful or malicious
interference with any radio communications of any station licensed or
authorized by or under the Act or operated by the United States
Government. In addition, Section 302(b) of the Act, and Section 2.803(a)
of the Commission's rules, prohibit the manufacture, importation,
marketing, sale or operation of devices deliberately designed to jam or
disrupt wireless communications. The Commission has issued two Public
Notices specifically stating that the sale and use of transmitters
designed to prevent, jam or interfere with the operation of cellular and
personal communications service ("PCS") telephones is unlawful. Section
303 of the Act also authorizes agents of the Commission to inspect all
radio installations to determine compliance with Commission rules.

The operation of the device utilized by you constitutes a violation of
Sections 333, 302(b), and 301 of the Act, as described above. Such
operation may subject you to substantial monetary forfeitures, in rem
arrest action against the offending radio equipment, and criminal
sanctions including imprisonment. Because unauthorized operation creates a
danger of interference to important radio communications services, and may
subject the operator to severe penalties, this notice emphasizes the
importance of complying strictly with these legal requirements.

UNAUTHORIZED OPERATION OF THIS RADIO STATION MUST NOT RESUME.

You may respond with any information you believe relevant to this warning
within (10) days from the date of this warning. Your response should be
sent to the address in the letterhead and reference the listed case
number. Under the Privacy Act of 1974, we are informing you that the
Commission's staff will use all relevant material information before it to
determine what, if any, enforcement action is required to ensure your
compliance with FCC Rules. This will include any information that you
disclose in your reply.

You may contact this office if you have any questions.

Michael Mattern

Resident Agent

Miami Office

Attachments:

Excerpts from the Communications Act of 1934, As Amended

Enforcement Bureau, "Inspection Fact Sheet", March 2005

47 U.S.C. S: 301. The only exception to this licensing requirement is for
certain transmitters using or operating at a power level that complies
with the standards established in Part 15 of the Commission's rules. 47
C.F.R. S:S: 15.1 et seq.

47 C.F.R. Part 2, Subpart J.

47 U.S.C. S: 333.

47 U.S.C. S: 302a(b); 47 C.F.R. S: 2.803(a).

See Office of Engineering and Technology and Compliance and Information
Bureau Warn Against the Manufacture, Importation, Marketing or Operation
of Transmitters Designed to Prevent or Otherwise Interfere with Cellular
Radio Communications. DA 99-2150, released October 12, 1999; Sale or Use
of Transmitters Designed to Prevent, Jam or Interfere with Cell Phone
Communications is Prohibited in the United States. DA 05-1776, released
June 27, 2005.

47 U.S.C. S: 303.

47 U.S.C. S:S: 301, 302a(b), 333.

See 47 U.S.C. S:S: 401, 501, 503, 510.

5 U.S.C. S: 552a(e)(3).

 

[blantonl]

Does anyone know the reason why he had the jammer installed? Was this a business or something?

 

[N_Jay]

Scott J Hidnert ESQ & Anthony J Mallo ESQ, Miami FL 33150 -- MerchantCircle.com

 

[texasemt13]

Scott J Hidnert ESQ & Anthony J Mallo ESQ, Miami FL 33150 -- MerchantCircle.com

Oh so it was some attorneys? Of all people they should have been the ones that were able to find out if this activity was legal or not. I'm glad they got a citation. If you don't want anybody leaking sensitive information from your meetings, than the legal way to do that is to have a lead lined room- not a frequency jammer.

 

[kb2vxa]

Follow the link for some giggles.

 

[MTS2000des]

friggin hilarious, a couple of jailhouse lawyers, would you want these clowns defending YOU?

WTF would they need a cellphone jammer? something tells me this may have some deliberate use to interfere with the Miami 800TRS which may in fact, subject them to serious state charges (KS4VT would know) if in fact, the intent was to interfere with a public safety radio system.

 

[mikepdx]

"During the inspection of the equipment, you admitted to owning and operating the cell phone jamming device".

They must be some crappy attorneys.
They don't even remain silent on their own behalf...

Of course, it was obvious, but they didn't need to incriminate themselves further.

Follow the link for some giggles.

Customer Reviews:
One word: terrible ............ LOL

If you don't want anybody leaking sensitive information from your meetings, than the legal way to do that is to have a lead lined room- not a frequency jammer.

RF Shielding paint is available, too:
http://www.lessemf.com/paint.html

Expensive stuff, but a whole lot cheaper than an FCC visit or a criminal charge.

 

[kb2vxa]

Chicken wire, good old fashioned chicken wire... WORKS, I kid thee not.

 

[N_Jay]

Chicken wire, good old fashioned chicken wire... WORKS, I kid thee not.

Why don't you try that and tell us what the attenuation is.

 

[gmclam]

Officials Ask Help Controlling Prison Cell Phones

Critics Say Jamming Devices Could Interfere With Services

WASHINGTON -- State officials appealed to members of Congress on Wednesday to give states a new tool to control illegal cell phone use by prison inmates and quickly ran into protests from the phone industry. Industry representatives say jamming signals could interfere with legitimate service and 911 calls.

Prisons around the nation are grappling with rising problems from prison inmates using cell phones to coordinate criminal activity. Officials are backing legislation to change the law to allow states to use cell phone jamming technology to render cell phones useless in prison.

Texas State Sen. John Whitmire, whose life was threatened by a death row inmate with a cell phone, said cell phones smuggled inside prisons are the fastest growing and most alarming development in prison contraband in Texas. He said corrections officials are in "a war" and need the jamming tool.

Steve Largent, president and CEO of CTIA-The Wireless Association, testified that he didn't believe cell phone jamming would fully address the issue. He told the committee there are better technological alternatives. One alternative Largent proposed is called cell detection, technology that would enable prison officials to find a cell phone used inside a correctional environment without sending an interfering signal. By detecting the cell phone, prison officials could find and confiscate cell phones in prison without interfering with citizens' cell phone use or public safety channels.

The dangerous and far-reaching aspects of prisoner cell phone use were illustrated in Maryland two years ago, when a Baltimore drug dealer used a cell phone to plan the killing of a witness from the city jail. In May, Patrick A. Byers Jr. was convicted of murdering Carl S. Lackl Jr., who had identified Byers as the gunman in a previous killing.

Gary Maynard, secretary of the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, emphasized that the problem is a national issue, noting that California prison officials collected more than 2,800 cell phones last year -- two times the amount found the previous year.

FULL STORY: Officials Ask Help Controlling Prison Cell Phones - Politics News Story - KCRA Sacramento

 

[DaveNF2G]

Cellphone jammers won't solve the fundamental problem. Contraband of all sorts gets into prisons with ridiculous ease.

 

[texasemt13]

RF Shielding paint is available, too:
Electromagnetic Field Shielding Paints

Expensive stuff, but a whole lot cheaper than an FCC visit or a criminal charge.

I had never seen that stuff- neat. I couldn't justify the cost (but at least I know the option is available- instead of having to add concrete reinforcement to your house to support the lead walls).

*removing tin foil cap*

 

[gmclam]

Cellphone jammers won't solve the fundamental problem. Contraband of all sorts gets into prisons with ridiculous ease.

True, but it will turn cell phones into "bricks" when they are in prisons.

 

[kb2vxa]

Originally Posted by kb2vxa
Chicken wire, good old fashioned chicken wire... WORKS, I kid thee not.

N_Jay:
"Why don't you try that and tell us what the attenuation is."

Why don't you build a Sterba curtain using it as a reflector and tell us what the front to back ratio is? (;->)

 

[prc117f]

I had never seen that stuff- neat. I couldn't justify the cost (but at least I know the option is available- instead of having to add concrete reinforcement to your house to support the lead walls).

*removing tin foil cap*

Nice. Not to expensive for one room. Beats the Aluminium foil helmet.

This paint could be marketed to other markets as well, the Paranoid black helicopter crowd.

 

[gillz]

Hello to all!

The dangerous and far-reaching aspects of prisoner cell phone use were illustrated in Maryland two years ago, when a Baltimore drug dealer used a cell phone to plan the killing of a witness from the city jail. In May, Patrick A. Byers Jr. was convicted of murdering Carl S. Lackl Jr., who had identified Byers as the gunman in a previous killing.

Thank's!...

 

[littona]

This topic was beaten to death on another web site forum. My opinion: Keep cellphones from entering the prison in the first place. Same philosophy as weapons. Sure, prisoners can make weapons, but I'd like to see them make a cellphone! :lol:

 

[N9NRA]

The thing here folks, is that these cellphones that inmates are using are prepaid ones, which, if i`m correct, cannot be traced to a specfic user (the mobile number dosen`t point to an account), now the handset CAN be found by simple RDF (direction finding), which is much better than a jammer. But, i have read articles about regular folks going online and purchasing these units and using `em, read of one guy on a train somewhere that was bothered by folks using their handsets, and he activated his jammer (hidden in a shirt pocket), thereby taking out all cell service in a 30 foot radius, i for one don`t think these units are needed, if they want to stop inmates from smuggling cellphones into the prison system then they might want to think about mabey LOOKING A BIT HARDER for these things and comfiscating them, or better yet working with the cellullar indrusty on a way to limit cell use in a DOC facility...Oh, i forgot...we`re talking about the DOC here...they don`t know what easy is (just kidding folks ). N9NRA

 

[gmclam]

My opinion: Keep cellphones from entering the prison in the first place. Same philosophy as weapons. Sure, prisoners can make weapons, but I'd like to see them make a cellphone!

I'd like to create technology that renders homemade weapons useless in prisons. But that won't happen.

i for one don`t think these units are needed, if they want to stop inmates from smuggling cellphones into the prison system then they might want to think about mabey LOOKING A BIT HARDER for these things and comfiscating them

One problem is the prison employees that help or allow cell phones to be brought into prisons. No other laws are going to solve the problem. The only solution that is 100% is to make cell phones non-functional in prisons. The only valid reasons I can come up with for people to dislike this approach, is that they are part of the problem or afraid the technology will interfere with their radios.

 

[N_Jay]

. . . .The only solution that is 100% is to make cell phones non-functional in prisons.

Nope, there are others. Like redirectling the calls.

. . . . The only valid reasons I can come up with for people to dislike this approach, is that they are part of the problem or afraid the technology will interfere with their radios.

Nope, again.

There are lots of good reasons beyond being afraid the technology will interfere with radios.