# Gibson phone call: how is it legal? Are they not in California? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 10, 2010, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244 "2010-07-10T20:34:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2010, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/1 "2010-07-10T20:34:21Z")
I looked into this some years ago and my understanding is that it is not legal to record conversations in California without both parties’ knowledge. Has the law changed, or are Gibson and his girlfriend somewhere else? Because I also heard that the calls were going to be used in the custody battle. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2010, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/2 "2010-07-10T20:40:09Z")
> **[California Penal Code Section 636 - California Attorney Resources -...](https://law.onecle.com/california/penal/636.html)** > > California state laws including the Business and Profession Code, Civil Code, Code of Civil Procedure, Commercial Code, Corporations Code, Education Code, Evidence Code, Family Code, Fish and Game Code, Health and Safety Code, Insurance Code, Labor... won’t be admissible in court. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2010, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/3 "2010-07-10T20:58:21Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > [California Penal Code Section 636 - California Attorney Resources - California Laws](http://law.onecle.com/california/penal/636.html) > > won’t be admissible in court. That particular code section isn’t applicable, it’s about recordings made of people who are somehow in custody. > [@](#): > > between a person who > is in the physical custody of a law enforcement officer or other > public officer, or who is on the property of a law enforcement agency ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2010, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/4 "2010-07-10T21:14:46Z")
I don’t think the recording was a phone call was it? ---
**Author:** ![gladtobeblazed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/85f322/32.png) [@gladtobeblazed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gladtobeblazed)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2010, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/5 "2010-07-10T23:00:11Z")
I thought it was legal to record a phone call if the other party were making threats of violence. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/6 "2010-07-11T00:11:03Z")
It was a phone call and the law the way I remember it was that it didn’t matter whether it was a phone call or in person. ---
**Author:** ![Bartman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@Bartman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bartman)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/7 "2010-07-11T03:56:49Z")
Context please? What is a Gibson phone call? If you have a link that would be nice. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/8 "2010-07-11T04:11:16Z")
> [@gladtobeblazed](#): > > I thought it was legal to record a phone call if the other party were making threats of violence. That’s what [this](http://www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs9-wrtp.htm) site says. > [@](#): > > California law does not allow tape recording of telephone calls unless all parties to the conversation consent (California Penal Code 632), or they are notified of the recording by a distinct “beep tone” warning (CPUC General Order 107-B(II)(A)(5)). However, tape recordings can legally be made if an individual or members of one’s family are threatened with kidnapping, extortion, bribery or another felony involving violence. The person receiving the threats can make a tape recording without informing the other party. (California Penal Code 633.5) Seems like you can record without letting the other party know just by claiming they made a serious threat at some point before you started taping. Either that or the above site fails to mention you first need permission from a government agency. ---
**Author:** ![Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a88e57/32.png) [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fried_Dough_Ho)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/9 "2010-07-11T04:34:51Z")
> [@Bartman](#): > > Context please? What is a Gibson phone call? If you have a link that would be nice. [Mel Gibson’s rant against his wife.](http://www.popeater.com/2010/07/09/mel-gibson-oksana-grigorieva/) ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/10 "2010-07-11T04:42:23Z")
I don’t believe that Mel Gibson was married to Oksana Grigorieva, so she’s not his wife. And I believe that the rant was left on her voicemail box, so I don’t think there’s any question of legality. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/11 "2010-07-11T04:45:44Z")
If you leave a voicemail, you are _de facto_ consenting to be recorded. Remember, the same thing happened with Alec Baldwin. ETA, I think there may have been more than one recording, though, because he is directly responding to her at one point (when she gets him to admit that he punched her in the face and knocked out her teeth…“You know what? You fucking deserved it.” All class, this guy). Anyway, I thought I’d read that the cops TOLD her to record him because he’d been making threats. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/12 "2010-07-11T04:46:16Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > And I believe that the rant was left on her voicemail box, so I don’t think there’s any question of legality. No, it was a telephone conversation. There’s a link you can click on and listen to it in the link **Fried Dough Ho** provided. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/13 "2010-07-11T04:53:48Z")
Just because something is illegal, doesn’t mean that people don’t do it. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/14 "2010-07-11T04:56:55Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > Just because something is illegal, doesn’t mean that people don’t do it. Read the last sentence of the OP. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/15 "2010-07-11T05:06:47Z")
> [@x-ray\_vision](#): > > No, it was a telephone conversation. There’s a link you can click on and listen to it in the link **Fried Dough Ho** provided. From reading the Wikipedia article on Mel Gibson, I gather that there was both a telephone conversation recorded by Oksana Grigorieva as well as one or more voicemail messages. ---
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/16 "2010-07-11T05:13:09Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > From reading the Wikipedia article on Mel Gibson, I gather that there was both a telephone conversation recorded by Oksana Grigorieva as well as one or more voicemail messages. Right, but you said you don’t think there’s any question of legality because the rant was left on her voicemail box. It’s most likely that **Stoid** wasn’t confusing the voicemail with a phone conversation but was referencing the conversation in his OP. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2010, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/17 "2010-07-11T05:40:34Z")
**Stoid** is a she, but I think you answered her question definitively in post #8. It was legal to tape the call because he’d made threats. ---
**Author:** ![Bartman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/779978/32.png) [@Bartman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bartman)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/18 "2010-07-12T03:10:02Z")
> [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](#): > > [Mel Gibson’s rant against his wife.](http://www.popeater.com/2010/07/09/mel-gibson-oksana-grigorieva/) Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2010, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gibson-phone-call-how-is-it-legal-are-they-not-in-california/546244/19 "2010-07-12T04:09:10Z")
> [@Bartman](#): > > Thanks. Don’t feel bad. It threw me, too, and I was aware of the tape. I don’t think of him as Gibson–he’s either Mel Gibson or Crazy Mel.