Monitoring front porch, driveway with X10 security system - legal implications?

[condor11]

There has recently been nasty stuff going on in my neighbourhood. Frequent breakins, vandals. I've decided I had enough and will get X10 stuff for security video monitoring. I already know where I will place cameras in my house. But I also want to monitor outside perimeter - drivaway and porch. So I guess I'll need to install the camera on the front porch to monitor the driveway. I am not sure what are the legal rules about video camera looking in the front yard. Does anyone here know?
I am asking if any Canadian knows because the law may be different than USA.
Also I wonder what USA guys can say about this is it legal where you live? 

P.S. Just last night at 5am my car alarm went off - kids have been going through all cars on the screet. Good thing my neighbour and I caught one and called the police.
But many times we couldn't catch any 

[Charles Sullivan]

There has recently been nasty stuff going on in my neighbourhood. Frequent breakins, vandals. I've decided I had enough and will get X10 stuff for security video monitoring. I already know where I will place cameras in my house. But I also want to monitor outside perimeter - drivaway and porch. So I guess I'll need to install the camera on the front porch to monitor the driveway. I am not sure what are the legal rules about video camera looking in the front yard. Does anyone here know?
I am asking if any Canadian knows because the law may be different than USA.
Also I wonder what USA guys can say about this is it legal where you live? 

P.S. Just last night at 5am my car alarm went off - kids have been going through all cars on the screet. Good thing my neighbour and I caught one and called the police.
But many times we couldn't catch any 

Better check with your local and provincial police.  One Canadian guy (in Ontario as I recall) claimed a neighbor was vandalizing his property and set up a video camera outside.  After another vandalism incident, he called the police.  But when the police came they arrested him for having set up the camera!  This guy came across as a nut on his website (which I don't remember), but you never can tell.   He also posted to Usenet newsgroup comp.home.automation about 1 or 2 years ago about this.

I've been told there are evesdropping laws in some US states which make it illegal to surreptitiously record conversations but I haven't heard anything about video surveillance.

Disclaimer: I am not an attorney - the above is just personal opinion.

[hawk1]

if i remember right, i just read something about the laws concerning this subject in this forum.  do a search for Laws and in the camera forums and see what comes up.  hope this helps.

[condor11]

if i remember right, i just read something about the laws concerning this subject in this forum.  do a search for Laws and in the camera forums and see what comes up.  hope this helps.

I tiried the search but couln't find anything there...

[Dan Lawrence]

Try searching the law in your Province.  I suspect very few posters here are from Canada, but I might be wrong.

[HA Dave]

The laws in the U.S.A. vary greatly as it depends on which state you are in (we must have nearly 50 of those states). In my state, people in my yard... or any PUBLIC place have a reasonable expection of being SEEN. Therefore, they can be video recorded. However, partially because of older laws, peoples voices can not be recorded without permission.

[cafeclub]

Hi just joined this forum.  I joined for the reason in subject.  I am also having issues with a wacky neighbor who shot a gun off in front of my house to intimidate my dogs.  This was at 4 a.m. while she was making her neighborhood rounds.  I called the local police information number and was informed that because I live in the county, to shoot a gun in a "safe" manner is not illegal.

This neighbor has a verified history of killing a neighbor's dog.  Great.

So.  I am here.  I am new, want to set up a system but really do not want to get in trouble for a surveillance camera pointed to the street.  Before the week is up, I am going to find out all implications here.  (state of Tennessee).

[HA Dave]

.................  I am also having issues with a wacky neighbor who shot a gun off in front of my house to intimidate my dogs.  This was at 4 a.m. while she was making her neighborhood rounds. 

I am not sure I understand your post.

If you have a neighbor... who is walking the neighborhood at 4 AM with a gun, you have a serious problem, that a camera won't help. Introduce your dog to her, so they can become friends, the woman is obviously very frighten by dogs.

If you have a DOG that roams the neighborhood waking and frighting neighbors..... shame on you. You need to invest your camera money in a invisible fence, and make amends with your neighbor.

I really like my X10 camera system! But it doesn't resolve all problems. After I installed my cameras I had the neighbors over, and showed them the system. Good relations with the neighbors, is as important than a good alarm system.