Code Enforcement Inspector Didn't Disclose She Was Recording Our Conversation

[iokuok2]

My question involves criminal privacy law for the state of: California
I was notified by code enforcement of possible code violations in the home I bought nine years ago. The violations alleged in the structures I did not deny but they were not made by me, we all agreed that much is true. I have the position that they were in fact permitted and allowed by the City in the mid 80's almost 30 years ago. The permits are there but there is ambiguity. The issues were constructed 30 years ago but the City is just now challenging them. My initial question is, Is there no statute of limitation if they were to determine these are real violations?

The Code Enforcement officer insisted on inspecting part of my house, specifically the kitchen.

After going back and forth as to whether the permits were clear and indicative of the issues actually being permitted, I agreed to let them look at a portion of my home. They threatened to get a police warrant if I didn't so I did not feel there was much reasonable alternative though they knew I was not particularly comfortable with them in my home.

I had my boyfriend come over and act as a witness to what was to take about 20 minutes. About 15 minutes into this my boyfriend notices a black piece of jewelry is not jewelry at all but a video recording device worn by the Code Enforcement inspection officer. At one point the code officer wanted to take pictures and I said, "no." Hence, at that point, there was no question that I did not want visual recording of the inside of my home on file as much as I could avoid it. She was holding an obvious red point and shoot camera which she then put away. However,

My boyfriend suddenly says , " hey, are you video taping this? is that a recoding device? " Pinned to her chest was another device. It was small enough that one would not readily know this if it was the first time you had seen it which was the case. he added, " you have been video recording us this whole time, aren't you supposed to disclose that?"
She replied, "I turned off the video it is only an audio recorder at the moment. The recording is only for my purposes. I don't have to disclose when I'm recoding audio, just like the local police don't. "

When I read the Ca. Law on recording in places of a "reasonable right of privacy" and this was inside my home, is she telling the truth? What rights do I have when this happens? I have no way to know if she was also video taping except she said so. I'm not even sure she has that option on the device, it looks like a VOX mini recorder about the size of a AA battery with the lens on the left, which she had clipped to the center of her shirt like a decretive pin. I think it is a model commonly used by

[cdwjava]

My question involves criminal privacy law for the state of: California
I was notified by code enforcement of possible code violations in the home I bought nine years ago. The violations alleged in the structures I did not deny but they were not made by me, we all agreed that much is true. I have the position that they were in fact permitted and allowed by the City in the mid 80's almost 30 years ago. The permits are there but there is ambiguity. The issues were constructed 30 years ago but the City is just now challenging them. My initial question is, Is there no statute of limitation if they were to determine these are real violations?

Why did this suddenly become an issue? Were you seeking to do some work and needed a new permit or inspection and this came up?

Yes, it might be difficult for them to hold you accountable for something that occurred 30 years ago before you may have owned the property, but, they can likely hold you accountable if you seek to do additional work.

And depending on what the issue is, you might find that your home will not retain its value nor even be insured if it comes out that there is un-permitted work.

The Code Enforcement officer insisted on inspecting part of my house, specifically the kitchen.

Okay. If you want to resolve the matter and get the permits either waived or issued, that's what you'll have to do.

I had my boyfriend come over and act as a witness to what was to take about 20 minutes. About 15 minutes into this my boyfriend notices a black piece of jewelry is not jewelry at all but a video recording device worn by the Code Enforcement inspection officer. At one point the code officer wanted to take pictures and I said, "no." Hence, at that point, there was no question that I did not want visual recording of the inside of my home on file as much as I could avoid it. She was holding an obvious red point and shoot camera which she then put away. However,

My boyfriend suddenly says , " hey, are you video taping this? is that a recoding device? " Pinned to her chest was another device. It was small enough that one would not readily know this if it was the first time you had seen it which was the case. he added, " you have been video recording us this whole time, aren't you supposed to disclose that?"
She replied, "I turned off the video it is only an audio recorder at the moment. The recording is only for my purposes. I don't have to disclose when I'm recoding audio, just like the local police don't. "

You're lucky. Had our building inspector or code enforcement officer been told to stop taking pictures, inspection would be over and there would be no change in status and a refusal to cooperate would have been noted.

When I read the Ca. Law on recording in places of a "reasonable right of privacy" and this was inside my home, is she telling the truth? What rights do I have when this happens? I have no way to know if she was also video taping except she said so. I'm not even sure she has that option on the device, it looks like a VOX mini recorder about the size of a AA battery with the lens on the left, which she had clipped to the center of her shirt like a decretive pin. I think it is a model commonly used by

And, do you really believe that any communication that was occurring between you and the code enforcement officer was a "confidential communication?" In general, he does have a right to record his inspections and his contacts. You can certainly report this to the police and see if they actually take a report and forward it to the DA ... I doubt it, though. But, you can try. And, if they don't, you can spend about $10,000+ to sue him for ... uh ... well, without damages that'd be kind of a head scratcher.

Additionally, if the Code Enforcement officer is a peace officer covered under PC 633 or 633.05 (with regards to the exceptions to record such conversation) then he would be automatically exempted without even having to look any further. But, even without that, it's hard to argue a confidential communication when engaging in conversation with the government.

You'd be better off dealing with the issue at hand with regards to the code violation. Address it, don't try and sidetrack the issue with complaints about recording devices because that will NOT change the issue at hand.

I might suggest you take the issue of the very old non-permitted construction to the Planning Commission or city council (as appropriate in your jurisdiction) and ask for a waiver there. yes, you will probably have to submit to a full inspection, and you might well want to get your own inspector to look into the matter as well to determine if the construction poses any risk or was at least consistent with safe practices at the time. What you do and how much you spend in addressing the issue depends on exactly what the issue is.

And why are you so paranoid about the guy in your home? You aren't engaged in some form of illegal activity are you???

[flyingron]

CDW is right. I do not believe the performance of a code inspector in his job is "private conversation." You were free to record him without his consent and likewise he can do the same.

[iokuok2]

Thank you for the peace officer status info, that is what I was looking for. No I am not engaged in illegal activity, I was more afraid that they are, I am a witness on some federal issues, since you asked; hence to answer the question "why this suddenly became an issue", I'm as surprised as you. I like the idea of asking the planning commission for input. I could have lied and covered up some of their questions but I did not. They were a bit evasive as they were wanting in my house before they even checked county records and microfiche . thanks for the input!

[travelplus]

If a Code Enforcement Officer wanted to enter my home I would first ask for their Badge# Who asked the officer to come and I would go as far as to ask for a Supervisor to come in with the officer or else I would refuse to let them enter my house. I would call the Police as well.

As the Code Enforcement Officer was there for something that happened 30 years ago I would tell them that at the time what I have is legal. Furthermore they had to take care of this years ago.

Secondly I would be contacting the City Planning Office who has the plans and have the Code Officer go there before entering my house.

If I found that the Code Officer was recording me whether by audio or video without consent I would tell the officer to leave my property and ask for a Tresspas Order and ask that the code officer delete the recordings.

Under the State Law both parties must agree to recording unless its done by a Peace Officer for a Crime.

The Code Enforcement Officer did not have any permission to enter the property.

Now for some questions

Were you given a notice that a Code Enforcement Officer needs to speak with you and for you to call and schedule a time?

Did you get a letter as to why the Officer is coming?

In the letter there should be appeal information on how to appeal the case.

I would be reporting this incident to the State if you feel your rights and private property have been violated as a result of this incident.

Please keep us posted.

[free9man]

If a Code Enforcement Officer wanted to enter my home I would first ask for their Badge# Who asked the officer to come and I would go as far as to ask for a Supervisor to come in with the officer or else I would refuse to let them enter my house. I would call the Police as well.

As the Code Enforcement Officer was there for something that happened 30 years ago I would tell them that at the time what I have is legal. Furthermore they had to take care of this years ago.

Secondly I would be contacting the City Planning Office who has the plans and have the Code Officer go there before entering my house.

If I found that the Code Officer was recording me whether by audio or video without consent I would tell the officer to leave my property and ask for a Tresspas Order and ask that the code officer delete the recordings.

Under the State Law both parties must agree to recording unless its done by a Peace Officer for a Crime.

The Code Enforcement Officer did not have any permission to enter the property.

Now for some questions

Were you given a notice that a Code Enforcement Officer needs to speak with you and for you to call and schedule a time?

Did you get a letter as to why the Officer is coming?

In the letter there should be appeal information on how to appeal the case.

I would be reporting this incident to the State if you feel your rights and private property have been violated as a result of this incident.

Please keep us posted.

What on earth are you on about?

[L-1]

I had my boyfriend come over and act as a witness to what was to take about 20 minutes.

California law prohibits recording without consent when there is a reasonable expectation of privacy. As CDJWJAVA pointed out, the Code Enforcement Officer is a peace officer who is exempt from that prohibition.

But setting that aside, one should point out that you called a third party to be present and witness what took place so they could publicly testify on your behalf if there is a later dispute as to what occurred or was said. By involving a third party to be a public witness you eliminated any reasonable expectation of privacy you might of had as to this encounter. In doing so, recording would have been fair game for a private citizen as well.

[budwad]

Thank you for the peace officer status info, that is what I was looking for. No I am not engaged in illegal activity, I was more afraid that they are, I am a witness on some federal issues, since you asked; hence to answer the question "why this suddenly became an issue", I'm as surprised as you. I like the idea of asking the planning commission for input. I could have lied and covered up some of their questions but I did not. They were a bit evasive as they were wanting in my house before they even checked county records and microfiche . thanks for the input!

I would need to know what kind of violations you are speaking of. There are building code violations and there are zoning and use violations. If you are using your kitchen for commercial purposes, for example, that could be a building code, a zoning code, or a health code violation.

You bought the house 9 years ago and whatever you are speaking of was permitted and done 30 years ago. The code that was in effect at the time is the code that controlled the work. If the code changed since, if it was a use and new codes forbid the use, the use would be non-conforming from that point on and would be controlled by the ordinances on non-conforming uses in the zoning which generally says that a non-conforming use cannot be enlarged. If it was a plumbing code violation then the defect according to current codes would have to be corrected only if alterations were made where the defect existed. So just to say that there are code violations tells me nothing about what they are looking for.

There is no real SOL on this sort of thing because it is administrative and there are all sorts of way around it. Many local ordinances and county ordinances say that the authority has to act within 4 years of the infraction. But you have to ask when does the 4 year begin to toll, when something was done or when the authority finds out about it. Courts have decided on both sides.

When the work was done and permits were issued there was likely inspections done. There are no surprised here for the town. And when you bought your home 9 years ago there was likely another inspection done by the town to issue a new CO (certificate of occupancy) if your town requires it. So for this to just occur now probably has more to do with a SLAPP (or the town's version of it) than to do with a code violation. INTIMIDATION bureaucratic style.

Stop thinking about the recording because it means nothing unless you are using your kitchen as for some illegal purpose and there is evidence of it. So far you have not gotten any notice of violation and probably won't but if you do go see a land use attorney for advice.

Have you recently applied for building permits?

[cdwjava]

If a Code Enforcement Officer wanted to enter my home I would first ask for their Badge# Who asked the officer to come and I would go as far as to ask for a Supervisor to come in with the officer or else I would refuse to let them enter my house. I would call the Police as well.

And if you never let them into your home, they could just leave and refuse to close the case or issue the permits. They do not have to agree to your conditions, nor do the police have to respond.

If I found that the Code Officer was recording me whether by audio or video without consent I would tell the officer to leave my property and ask for a Tresspas Order and ask that the code officer delete the recordings.

You can ask for brie and wine - it doesn't mean they have to provide it.

Again, you tell them to get out, then if you are asking for a permit or to resolve something, it won't be done. Hopefully it would not be an issue where your insurance would necessarily lapse or the value of your home would drop when the record of the non-permitted work was placed on file. If you never planned to move or make an insurance claim, great.

Under the State Law both parties must agree to recording unless its done by a Peace Officer for a Crime.

There are other exceptions as well.

[jk]

cdwjava;815117]And if you never let them into your home, they could just leave and refuse to close the case or issue the permits. They do not have to agree to your conditions, nor do the police have to respond.

.[/QUOTE]unless they had a valid reason to deny the permit, there are ways around a building dept officer illegally refusing to issue a permit.

Hopefully it would not be an issue where your insurance would necessarily lapse or the value of your home would drop when the record of the non-permitted work was placed on file.

. As it is, there is no determination there is actually any non-permitted work. Without support that there is, that would be slander of title and is actionable




the OP asked:

I have the position that they were in fact permitted and allowed by the City in the mid 80's almost 30 years ago. The permits are there but there is ambiguity. The issues were constructed 30 years ago but the City is just now challenging them. My initial question is, Is there no statute of limitation if they were to determine these are real violations?

if there was a permit and the construction was given a final inspection and approval, that's it for the city. They don't get to revisit what they approved 30 years ago.

but given the paranoid statements of the OP, I suspect there is more to the issue than we are being told.