A federal judge has cleared the way for a class action alleging that police officers secretly recorded private phone calls inside the station. The court denied a motion to dismiss and held that the lawsuit sufficiently alleges that two senior Antioch police officers violated the law by running an unlawful wiretapping and surveillance operation. Jeff and his law firm filed the case with Jim Zouras of Stephan Zouras, LLC.
The case will now proceed to discovery, where the parties will investigate the full scope of the secret recording operation. You can read the ruling here.
The complaint alleges that, starting around 2012, police officers secretly connected computer software to the police department’s landline telephone network to monitor and record private, non-emergency calls without the knowledge or consent of callers. According to the complaint, the police department had no official policy authorizing or regulating the secret recording operation.
People were reportedly allowed to use the police station’s landline phones in private rooms to make personal calls. No one gave warnings, and nothing indicated the calls were being monitored.
According to the complaint, despite assurances of privacy, police officers secretly monitored and recorded the calls. The plaintiff later discovered that one of the police officers knew about personal matters he had discussed only during calls he made inside the station; a clear sign of targeted surveillance.
The case was brought under the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, the Federal Wiretap Act, and the Illinois Eavesdropping Act, which prohibit intercepting or recording private calls without proper legal authority.
The defendants argued that no one has a reasonable expectation of privacy in calls made to or from a police department, but the court rejected the argument. The court found that where the police invite people to make private calls in private spaces and leave them alone to do so, the Constitution’s protections apply.
The court also rejected the claim that the police officers’ conduct fell within the “ordinary course” law enforcement exception to the Federal Wiretap Act, finding that calls allegedly “targeted for surveillance” and “used for nefarious purposes” are not protected.
According to the complaint, in 2015, a newly appointed Chief of Police learned that command staff officers were using the recording system. The Chief allegedly told the Village attorney that the recording operation violated the law and that he wanted the matter investigated, however, the Village took no action. The recording system was uncovered in the summer of 2020.
The class action lawsuit was filed on behalf of all people whose private calls were surveilled during the secret recording operation. Hundreds or more people may have had their calls monitored during those years with no idea that their conversations were captured and potentially exploited.
Do you think your privacy rights were violated? Contact Jeff.
Read more about the case:
The Daily Herald: Federal lawsuit alleges Antioch unlawfully recorded nonemergency calls
The Cook County Record: Lawsuit claims Antioch cops used old 911 system to illegally record non-emergency calls to P.D.
The Chicago Tribune: Federal lawsuit alleges Antioch Police Department illegally recorded non-emergency telephone calls
The case was filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois captioned as Babnik v. The Village of Antioch et al., No. 21-cv-2022
NOTICE: The court’s ruling denying the motions to dismiss means the plaintiff’s claims have survived the pleading stage and the case will proceed. The ruling does not finally adjudicate the merits. The complaint’s allegations remain contested, and the defendants will likely continue to deny them. As of the date of this post, the court has not issued a final ruling on the merits.The information contained in this post is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
