Mobile Scanner Question

[skywalker975]

I was Told it was ileagle to have a scanner in your car in indiana and also ileagle to have a handheld scanner on you. Is this true? Im always going to Terre Haute and i have a mobile scanner in my car just wanting to make sure. Thanks

 

[usswood]

http://www.radioreference.com/forums/showthread.php?t=29849

Sure it is, with exceptions, read above

 

[skywalker975]

mobile scanner question

thanks for the reply but i found the answers in a discussion i over looked lol so everyone can disreguard this question THANKS AGAIN.

 

[Drummadude]

Yeah this is late, but as a precaution, DO NOT use a scanner in your car in Indiana. Every cop I know, and other explorers have told me to not use it in a car.

I live in Indy of course, and it's illegal. You do probably already know this, but I just wanted to make it clear.

 

[usswood]

Yeah this is late, but as a precaution, DO NOT use a scanner in your car in Indiana. Every cop I know, and other explorers have told me to not use it in a car.

I live in Indy of course, and it's illegal. You do probably already know this, but I just wanted to make it clear.

I use mine in my car??

 

[Drummadude]

Well just be aware that it's illegal to use a scanner in a vehicle in Indiana.

 

[kb9sxk]

Not for everyone.

 

[zerobleu]

here we go again....

check out http://radioreference.com/forums/showpost.php?p=220233&postcount=5

edit: added some value to my post...

 

[usswood]

Well just be aware that it's illegal to use a scanner in a vehicle in Indiana.

with Exceptions as explained in the Other thread....I fall into the EXCEPTION category

 

[W9NES]

Just my two cents worth here but check out Indiana Law 35-44-3-12,Are you a Ham Radio Operator with a vaild FCC license in your wallet.You are legal to have it,Just read the IC title 35 code and you will find a lot of answers to your questions.Thanks

 

[kd4bas]

Before this thread gets closed, I wanted to add my 2 cents worth to this. Several years ago, I was working for a courier company that sent me through Indiana. I E-mailed Indiana State Police via their website and poised this same question and this was the answer I received from them.

Of course, carry a copy of your ham license and the law section that pertains to this with you while in Indiana.



Indiana code is available online on Access Indiana at
www.state.in.us/legislative/ic/code. Indiana code 35-44-3-12(b) states
that subsection a1 and a2 do not apply to a person who holds an amateur
radio license issued by the Federal Communications Commission if the person
is not transmitting over a frequency assigned for police emergency purposes.
Section (c) defines "police radio". You may contact private legal counsel
for further information.

Susan Dean, Lieutenant
Indiana State Police
Executive Office

 

[usswood]

Before this thread gets closed, I wanted to add my 2 cents worth to this. Several years ago, I was working for a courier company that sent me through Indiana. I E-mailed Indiana State Police via their website and poised this same question and this was the answer I received from them.

Of course, carry a copy of your ham license and the law section that pertains to this with you while in Indiana.



Indiana code is available online on Access Indiana at
www.state.in.us/legislative/ic/code. Indiana code 35-44-3-12(b) states
that subsection a1 and a2 do not apply to a person who holds an amateur
radio license issued by the Federal Communications Commission if the person
is not transmitting over a frequency assigned for police emergency purposes.
Section (c) defines "police radio". You may contact private legal counsel
for further information.

Susan Dean, Lieutenant
Indiana State Police
Executive Office

Ill tell u what also...Federal Law outways state law in the since that in an Emergency a HAM has the right to use whatever Freq he can to contact the proper authorities...That question is on the Technician Class test...

 

[whitesox4life]

From my understanding, a police radio is any TWO-WAY radio, not a scanning radio. If I remember correctly, if you have written permission from a law enforcement agency, you are allowed to have a mobile / handheld scanner in your possession while in a vehicle.

 

[GTO_04]

From my understanding, a police radio is any TWO-WAY radio, not a scanning radio. If I remember correctly, if you have written permission from a law enforcement agency, you are allowed to have a mobile / handheld scanner in your possession while in a vehicle.

If you read the statute carefully, you will discover that it applies to any radio that can transmit or receive on police frequencies. That is an important distinction. I missed that the first time too.

BTW, portable scanners are also illegal in Indiana, unless you have your ham license or othe narrowly defined exemption, or are using it on your own property. So technically the vast majority of race fans are violating the Indiana scanner law.

GTO_04

 

[bacon]

From my understanding, a police radio is any TWO-WAY radio, not a scanning radio. If I remember correctly, if you have written permission from a law enforcement agency, you are allowed to have a mobile / handheld scanner in your possession while in a vehicle.

In my case, I don't have a ham license so I got written permission from a police chief in my area. I carry a card in my wallet that I made (a permission slip, if you will) with a reference to the law and the police chief's signature on it. This has been done for me on 3 occasions because as a previous chief left the new chief re-OKed me. I was able to use my job as a justification for listening to a scanner at work.

I've been carrying my scanner around (mainly to and from work) for about 7+ years now and only had one officer ask about the scanner when she saw it in my car at a grocery store. I told her I had permission and offered to show it to her but she didn't ask to see it.

 

[W9GC]

Wire and Electronic Communications Interception and Interception of Oral Communications

As provided by info at http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/cybercrime/18usc2511.htm

• (g) It shall not be unlawful under this chapter [18 USCS §§ 2510 et seq.] or chapter 121 of this title [18 USCS §§ 2701 et seq.] for any person:
  
  (i) to intercept or access an electronic communication made through an electronic communication system that is configured so that such electronic communication is readily accessible to the general public;
  
  (ii) to intercept any radio communication which is transmitted:
  
  (I) by any station for the use of the general public, or that relates to ships, aircraft, vehicles, or persons in distress;
  
  (II) by any governmental, law enforcement, civil defense, private land mobile, or public safety communications system, including police and fire, readily accessible to the general public;
  
  (III) by a station operating on an authorized frequency within the bands allocated to the amateur, citizens band, or general mobile radio services; or
  
  (IV) by any marine or aeronautical communications system;
  
  (iii) to engage in any conduct which--
  
  (I) is prohibited by section 633 of the Communications Act of 1934; or
  
  (II) is excepted from the application of section 705(a) of the Communications Act of 1934 [47 USCS § 605(a)] by section 705(b) of that Act [47 USCS § 605(b)];
  
  (iv) to intercept any wire or electronic communication the transmission of which is causing harmful interference to any lawfully operating station or consumer electronic equipment, to the extent necessary to identify the source of such interference; or
  
  (v) for other users of the same frequency to intercept any radio communication made through a system that utilizes frequencies monitored by individuals engaged in the provision or the use of such system, if such communication is not scrambled or encrypted.

Federal law supersedes state law and it specifically says it's not illegal, so a state shouldn't be able to enforce a state law that makes them illegal under any circumstances.

• Federal preemption
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preemption_%28law%29 (law)
  
  In the legal system of the United States, preemption generally refers to the displacing effect that federal law will have on a conflicting or inconsistent state law. The Supremacy Clause (Article VI, section 2) of the United States Constitution states that The Laws of the United States, (which shall be made in Pursuance to the Constitution), shall be the supreme Law of the land. Thus, when there is a conflict between a state law and federal law, the federal law (subject to the Tenth Amendment and Fifth Amendment and other Constitutional Law) trumps – or "preempts" – the state law. The term is also sometimes used to refer to the displacing effect state laws might have on ordinances enacted by municipalities.
  
  The term "preemption" is also used in federal statutes in the context of land, such as in the historic Preemption Act of 1841, which allowed settlers the opportunity to legally obtain title to land if a settler remained on a plot of land for a certain time. This article does not cover that legal use of the term.
  
  Types of preemption:
  
  Two situations where preemption claims might arise: express preemption and implied preemption.
  
  1. Express preemption occurs where Congress says within the statute 'we hereby preempt.' Here, federal laws are explicitly precluding state and local regulations.
  
  2. Implied preemption has, within itself, three sub-categories: conflicts preemption, preemption because state law impedes the achievement of a federal objective, and preemption because federal law occupies the field.
  
  * Conflicts preemption is where it is impossible to comply with both the federal statute and the state or local law. In this situation, the federal statute must be followed. It is, however, appropriate to have two laws, one federal and one state, that differ. The federal law, in this case, may be a minimum standard, while the state enacts a law to be more strict. State law, therefore, would not be preempted. Preemption would only occur if the federal and state laws were mutually exclusive.
  
  * The second type of implied preemption is preemption because state law impedes the achievement of a federal objective. This type of preemption occurs when a state or local law interferes with a goal or objective Congress was trying to attain with a federal statute. The purpose of each law must be determined and compared to each other. If both laws are trying to achieve the same goal, federal law will preempt the state or local regulation.
  
  * The final type of implied preemption is preemption because federal law occupies the field. In this situation, one must look at Congress's intent, and whether the federal law was meant to be exclusive in that area. The most common examples are in areas of foreign policy and immigration for the better of human kind. Implied preemption has also been held to apply to the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA), giving the federal government the exclusive jurisdiction to resolve Labor Union versus Employer contract disputes, as well as the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), giving the federal government exclusive jurisdiction (with minor exceptions) over enforcement of the substantive provisions of employer-sponsored Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans (Cigna v. Calad, 2004).

 

[ROY_PICKETT]

this topic can be a little confusing at times..

 

[W9GC]

I agree. But what makes it confusing is that state governments and local municipalities create laws and ordinances that conflict with Federal law.

Just remember:

The Supremacy Clause (Article VI, section 2) of the United States Constitution states that The Laws of the United States, (which shall be made in Pursuance to the Constitution), shall be the supreme Law of the land. Thus, when there is a conflict between a state law and federal law, the federal law (subject to the Tenth Amendment and Fifth Amendment and other Constitutional Law) trumps – or "preempts" – the state law.

 

[pappy1]

Read the bold part, it explains it well how it can be enforced on the state level.

gc505 Posted:

The federal law (subject to the Tenth Amendment and Fifth Amendment and other Constitutional Law) trumps – or "preempts" – the state law.
Federal preemption

Types of preemption:

Two situations where preemption claims might arise: express preemption and implied preemption.

1. Express preemption occurs where Congress says within the statute 'we hereby preempt.' Here, federal laws are explicitly precluding state and local regulations.

2. Implied preemption has, within itself, three sub-categories: conflicts preemption, preemption because state law impedes the achievement of a federal objective, and preemption because federal law occupies the field.

* Conflicts preemption is where it is impossible to comply with both the federal statute and the state or local law. In this situation, the federal statute must be followed. It is, however, appropriate to have two laws, one federal and one state, that differ. The federal law, in this case, may be a minimum standard, while the state enacts a law to be more strict.
State law, therefore, would not be preempted. Preemption would only occur if the federal and state laws were mutually exclusive.