On Tue, 31 Aug 2004 12:54:24 GMT, Sandy Hoff
wrote:

Hi guys,

Long time listener, first time caller here.
I have a question.
Is it legal to carry a police scanner in my car?
I have no interest in monitoring the police.
I have the scanner in case TSHTF and I need to hear what's going on.
Wind direction and weather from KEC83, local radio, instructions. That
sort of thing.
I live in Maryland and work in Baltimore City.

I Googled but didn't come up with much.
Maybe a good site recommendation?

Thank you guys. Great NGs, very informative.

Sandy.


I believe licensed HAM's can carry a scanner even in areas where local
laws prohibit the practice. Check with your local police.



Kirk

"Moe, Larry, the cheese!", Curly

Yes, but be prepared to show a copy of your license if you are asked.

"'Captain' Kirk DeHaan" wrote in message
news
On Tue, 31 Aug 2004 12:54:24 GMT, Sandy Hoff
wrote:

Hi guys,

Long time listener, first time caller here.
I have a question.
Is it legal to carry a police scanner in my car?
I have no interest in monitoring the police.
I have the scanner in case TSHTF and I need to hear what's going on.
Wind direction and weather from KEC83, local radio, instructions. That
sort of thing.
I live in Maryland and work in Baltimore City.

I Googled but didn't come up with much.
Maybe a good site recommendation?

Thank you guys. Great NGs, very informative.

Sandy.


I believe licensed HAM's can carry a scanner even in areas where local
laws prohibit the practice. Check with your local police.



Kirk

"Moe, Larry, the cheese!", Curly

Ham operators are legally able to carry scanners as a part of their
"licensed obligation" to carry and forward emergency information to the
general public. Joe blow is generally frowned on about having a scanner
because the police immediately suspect that you would only need the use of
the scanner to evade the police in the commision of a crime. Or something to
that effect.
You should check with your local smokey to be sure.

Larry

"'Captain' Kirk DeHaan" wrote in message
news
On Tue, 31 Aug 2004 12:54:24 GMT, Sandy Hoff
wrote:

Hi guys,

Long time listener, first time caller here.
I have a question.
Is it legal to carry a police scanner in my car?
I have no interest in monitoring the police.
I have the scanner in case TSHTF and I need to hear what's going on.
Wind direction and weather from KEC83, local radio, instructions. That
sort of thing.
I live in Maryland and work in Baltimore City.

I Googled but didn't come up with much.
Maybe a good site recommendation?

Thank you guys. Great NGs, very informative.

Sandy.


I believe licensed HAM's can carry a scanner even in areas where local
laws prohibit the practice. Check with your local police.



Kirk

"Moe, Larry, the cheese!", Curly

First of all, there are only three kinds of people to a cop. Cops,
cop's families and suspects. Second, never ask a cop about the law.
They don't know dick about it. If they did, they'd be lawyers.

Russ

On Thu, 2 Sep 2004 19:09:17 -0700, "Larry Splane"
wrote:

Ham operators are legally able to carry scanners as a part of their
"licensed obligation" to carry and forward emergency information to the
general public. Joe blow is generally frowned on about having a scanner
because the police immediately suspect that you would only need the use of
the scanner to evade the police in the commision of a crime. Or something to
that effect.
You should check with your local smokey to be sure.

Larry

"'Captain' Kirk DeHaan" wrote in message
news
On Tue, 31 Aug 2004 12:54:24 GMT, Sandy Hoff
wrote:

Hi guys,

Long time listener, first time caller here.
I have a question.
Is it legal to carry a police scanner in my car?
I have no interest in monitoring the police.
I have the scanner in case TSHTF and I need to hear what's going on.
Wind direction and weather from KEC83, local radio, instructions. That
sort of thing.
I live in Maryland and work in Baltimore City.

I Googled but didn't come up with much.
Maybe a good site recommendation?

Thank you guys. Great NGs, very informative.

Sandy.


I believe licensed HAM's can carry a scanner even in areas where local
laws prohibit the practice. Check with your local police.



Kirk

"Moe, Larry, the cheese!", Curly

"Russ" wrote in message
...
First of all, there are only three kinds of people to a cop. Cops,
cop's families and suspects. Second, never ask a cop about the law.
They don't know dick about it. If they did, they'd be lawyers.

True. Which is why even a ham should print out and carry a copy of their
states' statutes regarding scanners if they live in a state like Minnesota;
i.e. where only hams can have scanners in their cars (or if you've gotten a
"special permit" from the state to have one in your car). Even though I
don't have a scanner in my car, many mobile amateur radios have extended
coverage that can pick up the police bands in the 150 MHz range, which makes
them "scanners". I printed out a copy of the Minnesota state statute and a
copy of my amateur radio license and I keep them in my glove compartment,
just in case I ever get pulled over and a cop notices my 2 meter radio. The
statute's very clear as to who can and cannot have a "scanner" in their car
in Minnesota.

Jackie

On Sun, 05 Sep 2004 23:38:34 GMT, "Buzzygirl"
wrote:


"Russ" wrote in message
.. .
First of all, there are only three kinds of people to a cop. Cops,
cop's families and suspects. Second, never ask a cop about the law.
They don't know dick about it. If they did, they'd be lawyers.

True. Which is why even a ham should print out and carry a copy of their
states' statutes regarding scanners if they live in a state like Minnesota;
i.e. where only hams can have scanners in their cars (or if you've gotten a
"special permit" from the state to have one in your car). Even though I
don't have a scanner in my car, many mobile amateur radios have extended
coverage that can pick up the police bands in the 150 MHz range, which makes
them "scanners".

Is this a legal definition? I would expect that a scanner
would have to have the capability of automatically "scanning" a number
of frequencies.

Not that this would dissuade the kind of cop who takes your
carrying such documentation as a personal challenge to his authority.

I printed out a copy of the Minnesota state statute and a
copy of my amateur radio license and I keep them in my glove compartment,
just in case I ever get pulled over and a cop notices my 2 meter radio. The
statute's very clear as to who can and cannot have a "scanner" in their car
in Minnesota.

Jackie

wrote in message
...
On Sun, 05 Sep 2004 23:38:34 GMT, "Buzzygirl"

Is this a legal definition? I would expect that a scanner
would have to have the capability of automatically "scanning" a number
of frequencies.

Here is the text of the Minnesota statute... you will see it says nothing
about "scanning" frequencies. A "scanner" here is defined as a device which
can receive police frequencies:

"299C.37 Police communication equipment; use, sale. Subdivision 1. Use
regulated. (a) No person other
than peace officers within the state, the members of the State Patrol, and
persons who hold an amateur radio license issued by the Federal
Communications Commission, shall equip any motor vehicle with any radio
equipment or combination of equipment, capable of receiving any radio
signal, message, or information from any police emergency frequency, or
install, use, or possess the equipment in a motor vehicle without permission
from the superintendent of the bureau upon a form prescribed by the
superintendent."

Not that this would dissuade the kind of cop who takes your
carrying such documentation as a personal challenge to his authority.

I would bring it up to a judge in traffic court and lodge a formal complaint
with the PD, if it had to go that far.

Jackie

"Buzzygirl" wrote:

Not that this would dissuade the kind of cop who takes your
carrying such documentation as a personal challenge to his authority.

I would bring it up to a judge in traffic court and lodge a formal complaint
with the PD, if it had to go that far.

Hah. You don't remember the case of the kid who was an ARES worker a
few years ago... had an RS HTX-202, which had no out-of-band
capabilities at all, cop stopped him, kerchunked his radio and --
surprise! -- it desensed his police radio. Confiscation and charges
ensued.

It took a lot of work and time (years) to get it untangled, and it was
a headline issue with ARRL for quite a while.

The only good news to come out of it was that particular police
department got publicised as the ****heads they were. I wonder if
there's an active ARES chapter left there...

....search engines are wonderful. Here's a more accurate summary of
the endgame:
Charges dismissed in Godsey case: It took more than two years, but
all charges against a Kentucky ham for impersonating a public servant
and disorderly conduct finally were dropped in December. Greg Godsey,
KF4BDY, of Hopkinsville, was just shy of his seventeenth birthday when
he was arrested by police in his hometown. At the time, Godsey was
active in ARES as Christian County EC. He claims the impersonation
charge stemmed from his ARES association. Police also had charged
Godsey with carrying a scanner capable of receiving police frequencies
and confiscated his Radio Shack HTX-202. The scanner charge reportedly
was dismissed in court the following month, and his H-T was returned
to him. The other charges had remained on the court docket, however.
Godsey, now 19, said the charges were dropped in December after he
agreed to not sue anybody over the matter. Godsey says he and his
family spent more than $3000 fighting the charges against him.

Source: http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/1999/02/23/3/

I would have ****in' sued to bankrupt the city. Not that I'm bitter
about power-mad authority types, oh, no.

(Local situation is much better and I am an ARES member. Cops here
actually treat us with respect, and get the same in return.)



--
Eric F. Richards,
"Making me root for a sanctimonious statist blowhard like Kerry isn't
the worst thing Bush has done to the country. But it's the offense
that I take most personally."
-- http://www.reason.com/links/links071304.shtml