criminal-law recording washington
Can I record myself cooking on camera, in the kitchen community space of the house that I rent a room at, and not be in violation of 9.73.030?
<p>I rent a room with a few other housemates, and I was wondering if I can record myself in the kitchen cooking and not be in violation of 9.73.030.</p>
<p>I understand that Washington State is a two party consent state, and that it would be a violation of 9.73.030 to record audio or a private conversation of a person without the consent of everyone involved.</p>
<p>However, if I am making a cooking video in the kitchen for say YouTube, and someone wants to use the kitchen before I am done with it, and they attempt to have a conversation with me, would that be a violation of 9.73.030?</p>
<p>Ultimately, would it be a crime to record cooking videos in the community space of where I live, without the consent of other people?</p>

<p>As is often the case with the recording statutes, the meaning of the law is refined by case law. Specifically, the consent requirement holds when the parties have a reasonable expectation of privacy. The statutory language limits the restriction to &quot;private communication&quot;: therefore, a person does not gain veto power over a public recording session simply by walking into the arena. Consent is implied when the fact of recording is self evident (you can see the operating recording device): by continuing to speak knowing that your speech is being recorded is implicit consent. Also, consent is only required for participants in the communication, and a person who happens to wander into the scene is not a participant in that communication.</p>
<p>You may not want to test the edges of the law, in case a person wanders into the scene oblivious to their surroundings and talking on their cell phone. There might be a scenario where you're recording yourself but they are <em>unaware</em> of that fact, and they are having another private communication. The law does not prohibit accidentally overhearing someone else's private communication, it prohibits <em>recording</em> it. An unavoidable sign may aid you in your quest to not get sued.</p>
