In Abington, Massachusetts, Michael Hyde was pulled over by police because his license plate wasn't properly illuminated and because his exhaust was too loud. Hyde suspected he was being targeted because he had long hair and drove a Porsche, so he surreptitiously taped the officers, who didn't charge him with any traffic violations but did ask whether he had drugs. Hyde was later charged under wiretap laws for violating the officers' privacy by failing to inform them they were being taped. "Police officers have the same rights as other citizens," said prosecutor Paul Dawley, adding that if police secretly taped others, it would be considered outrageous.

Traffic stops are routinely videotaped from police cruisers, of course, and people who are stopped are rarely informed of this fact. That's because wiretap laws were written before the advent of video technology, and only cover recorded voices. Typically, voyeurs are convicted not for filming their victims, but for forgetting to unplug the microphone. In fact, police videotapes do not feature an audio track. If Mr. Hyde had secretly videotaped the officer, he would have been well within the law.

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