Section 35-44.1-2-7 - Unlawful use of a police radio(a) A person who knowingly or intentionally:(1) possesses a police radio;(2) transmits over a frequency assigned for police emergency purposes; or(3) possesses or uses a police radio or a police radio mobile application:(A) while committing a crime;(B) to further the commission of a crime; or(C) to avoid detection by a law enforcement agency; commits unlawful use of a police radio, a Class B misdemeanor.
(b) Subsection (a)(1) and (a)(2) do not apply to:(1) a governmental entity;(2) a regularly employed law enforcement officer;(3) a common carrier of persons for hire whose vehicles are used in emergency service;(4) a public service or utility company whose vehicles are used in emergency service;(5) a person who has written permission from the chief executive officer of a law enforcement agency to possess a police radio;(6) a person who holds an amateur radio license issued by the Federal Communications Commission if the person is not transmitting over a frequency assigned for police emergency purposes;(7) a person who uses a police radio only in the person's dwelling or place of business;(8) a person: (A) who is regularly engaged in newsgathering activities;(B) who is employed by a newspaper qualified to receive legal advertisements under IC 5-3-1, a wire service, or a licensed commercial or public radio or television station; and(C) whose name is furnished by the person's employer to the chief executive officer of a law enforcement agency in the county in which the employer's principal office is located;(9) a person engaged in the business of manufacturing or selling police radios; or(10) a person who possesses or uses a police radio during the normal course of the person's lawful business.(c) As used in this section, "police radio" means a radio that is capable of sending or receiving signals transmitted on frequencies assigned by the Federal Communications Commission for police emergency purposes and that:(1) can be installed, maintained, or operated in a vehicle; or(2) can be operated while it is being carried by an individual. The term does not include a radio designed for use only in a dwelling.
(d) As used in this section, "police radio mobile application" means an application installed on a mobile device that allows a person to listen to the contents of traffic carried on police radio frequencies.Amended by P.L. 66-2019,SEC. 15, eff. 7/1/2019.Added by P.L. 126-2012, SEC. 54, eff. 7/1/2012.