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2018 Georgia Code 16-11-67 | Car Wreck Lawyer

TITLE 16 CRIMES AND OFFENSES

Section 11. Offenses Against Public Order and Safety, 16-11-1 through 16-11-224.

ARTICLE 3 INVASIONS OF PRIVACY

16-11-67. Admissibility of evidence obtained in violation of part.

No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part.

(Ga. L. 1967, p. 844, § 1; Code 1933, § 26-3007, enacted by Ga. L. 1968, p. 1249, § 1.)

Law reviews.

- For annual survey on criminal law, see 65 Mercer L. Rev. 79 (2013). For article on domestic relations, see 66 Mercer L. Rev. 65 (2014).

JUDICIAL DECISIONS

O.C.G.A. § 16-11-67 applies to violations of the administrative requirements of O.C.G.A. § 16-11-64; to protect against tampering, alteration, or destruction of evidence, and against allegations thereof, "obtained" necessarily includes both the gathering and safeguarding of evidence. Williams v. State, 265 Ga. 471, 457 S.E.2d 665 (1995).

Noncompliance with the administrative requirements of O.C.G.A. § 16-11-64 did not call for suppression of evidence developed from information gathered with a pen register where there was no showing of any prejudice to defendant's privacy interest resulting from such noncompliance. Williams v. State, 265 Ga. 471, 457 S.E.2d 665 (1995).

Construction with O.C.G.A. § 16-11-64. - O.C.G.A. § 16-11-64(c) merely provides authority to Georgia superior court judges to issue wiretap warrants upon proper application by the prosecuting attorney, and the statute contains no prohibition against evidence gathered as part of a federal investigation in compliance with the federal warrant process. Furthermore, the fact that the warrant was not initially issued by a Georgia superior court judge does not violate the requirements for obtaining a warrant codified in O.C.G.A. § 16-11-64(c), and that fact does not require suppression of evidence gathered pursuant to the warrant. State v. Harrell, 323 Ga. App. 56, 744 S.E.2d 867 (2013).

Violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2518 not included in allowable grounds of motion to suppress under former Code 1933, § 26-3007 (see now O.C.G.A. § 16-11-67). Ansley v. State, 124 Ga. App. 670, 185 S.E.2d 562 (1971), cert. denied, 408 U.S. 929, 92 S. Ct. 2503, 33 L. Ed. 2d 341 (1972).

Jurisdiction of warrant issuing court.

- Supreme Court of Georgia concludes that Georgia superior courts do not currently possess the authority to issue wiretap warrants for interceptions conducted outside the boundaries of their respective judicial circuits. Luangkhot v. State, 292 Ga. 423, 736 S.E.2d 397 (2013).

Appellate court erred in affirming a trial court's denial of the appellants' motion to suppress because the warrants were invalid since the Gwinnett County Superior Court lacked the authority to issue the wiretap warrants for the interceptions in the case which took place exclusively in Fulton County. Luangkhot v. State, 292 Ga. 423, 736 S.E.2d 397 (2013).

Issuance of a warrant by superior court judge.

- Trial court erred by granting the defendant's motion to suppress because the fact that the warrant was not initially issued by a Georgia superior court judge did not violate the requirements for obtaining a warrant codified in O.C.G.A. § 16-11-64(c) and that fact did not require suppression of evidence gathered pursuant to the warrant. State v. Harrell, 323 Ga. App. 56, 744 S.E.2d 867 (2013).

Section does not include telephone company records.

- O.C.G.A. § 16-11-67, while applicable to the content of telephone conversations, does not extend to include telephone company records. Van Nice v. State, 180 Ga. App. 112, 348 S.E.2d 515 (1986), cert. denied, 480 U.S. 931, 107 S. Ct. 1568, 94 L. Ed. 2d 760 (1987).

Evidence obtained surreptitiously by tape recording spouse's private telephone conversation is evidence obtained in violation of O.C.G.A. § 16-11-67 and is inadmissible for impeachment purposes. Ransom v. Ransom, 253 Ga. 656, 324 S.E.2d 437 (1985).

Exception to "fruit of poisonous tree" doctrine.

- In a prosecution of defendant wife for solicitation of murder, where there was no state participation in an illegal tapping of initial phone conversation by her husband, the "fruit of the poisonous tree" doctrine did not require suppression of an undercover agent's subsequent surreptitiously taped conversations with defendant. Jordan v. State, 211 Ga. App. 86, 438 S.E.2d 371 (1993).

Evidence properly excluded.

- Because none of the types of communication encompassed by O.C.G.A. § 16-11-66(a) were at issue, because the parties stipulated that the video recordings the victim made between the victim and defendant without defendant's consent were in a private place, and because the participant's exception in § 16-11-66(a) applied to O.C.G.A. § 16-11-62 in its entirety, pursuant to O.C.G.A. § 16-11-67, the trial court properly excluded the recordings. State v. Madison, 311 Ga. App. 31, 714 S.E.2d 714 (2011).

Cited in Bilbo v. State, 142 Ga. App. 716, 236 S.E.2d 847 (1977); Carter v. State, 239 Ga. 509, 238 S.E.2d 57 (1977); State v. Birge, 240 Ga. 501, 241 S.E.2d 213 (1978); State v. Bilbo, 240 Ga. 601, 242 S.E.2d 21 (1978); Dunham v. Belinky, 248 Ga. 479, 284 S.E.2d 397 (1981); Quillan v. State, 160 Ga. App. 167, 286 S.E.2d 503 (1981); Kesler v. State, 249 Ga. 462, 291 S.E.2d 497 (1982); Evans v. State, 252 Ga. 312, 314 S.E.2d 421 (1984); Reeves v. State, 192 Ga. App. 12, 383 S.E.2d 613 (1989); Quintrell v. State, 231 Ga. App. 268, 499 S.E.2d 117 (1998); Bishop v. State, 241 Ga. App. 517, 526 S.E.2d 917 (1999); North v. State, 250 Ga. App. 622, 552 S.E.2d 554 (2001); Moss v. State, 298 Ga. 613, 783 S.E.2d 652 (2016).

RESEARCH REFERENCES

ALR.

- Admissibility of telephone conversations in evidence, 71 A.L.R. 5; 105 A.L.R. 326.

Admissibility of evidence obtained by government or other public officer by intercepting letter or telegraph or telephone message, 134 A.L.R. 614.

What constitutes an "interception" of a telephone or similar communication forbidden by the Federal Communications Act (47 U.S.C. § 605) or similar state statutes, 9 A.L.R.3d 423.

Censorship and evidentiary use of unconvicted prisoners' mail, 52 A.L.R.3d 548.

Admissibility, in criminal prosecution, of evidence obtained by electronic surveillance of prisoner, 57 A.L.R.3d 172.

Permissible surveillance, under state communications interception statute, by person other than state or local law enforcement officer or one acting in concert with officer, 24 A.L.R.4th 1208.

State constitutional requirements as to exclusion of evidence unlawfully seized - post-Leon cases, 19 A.L.R.5th 470.

Cases Citing O.C.G.A. § 16-11-67

Total Results: 20  |  Sort by: Relevance  |  Newest First

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Burgeson v. State, 475 S.E.2d 580 (Ga. 1996).

Cited 126 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Sep 9, 1996 | 267 Ga. 102, 96 Fulton County D. Rep. 3236

...§§ 2510 et seq., which governs wire interception and interception of oral communications, and the state statutes regulating eavesdropping, surveillance, or the interception of communication which invades the privacy of another, OCGA §§ 16-11-62 through 16-11-67....
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Ledford v. State, 709 S.E.2d 239 (Ga. 2011).

Cited 97 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Mar 25, 2011 | 289 Ga. 70, 2011 Fulton County D. Rep. 934

...107, 561 S.E.2d 232 (2002). Smith addresses the circumstances in which a person gives sufficient implied consent to having his or her telephone conversations recorded to render the recording lawful under OCGA §§ 16-11-62 and 16-11-66 and, thus, admissible under OCGA § 16-11-67....
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Luangkhot v. State, 292 Ga. 423 (Ga. 2013).

Cited 86 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Jan 7, 2013 | 736 S.E.2d 397

...to issue wiretap warrants for the interceptions at issue here, which, on the evidence presented, took place exclusively in Fulton County. Therefore, the warrants were invalid, and Appellants’ motions to suppress should have been granted. See OCGA § 16-11-67 (evidence obtained in violation of wiretap statute is inadmissible)....
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Moss v. State, 298 Ga. 613 (Ga. 2016).

Cited 77 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Mar 7, 2016 | 783 S.E.2d 652

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Hampton v. State, 295 Ga. 665 (Ga. 2014).

Cited 44 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Sep 22, 2014 | 763 S.E.2d 467

...In the present review, this Court will accept the trial court's factual findings and credibility determinations unless they are clearly erroneous, but the Court will independently apply the legal principles to the facts. Id. Citing OCGA §§ 16-11-66.1 (a)2; 16-11-673, and 18 USCA § 2703 (a)4, 2 OCGA § 16-11-66.1 (a) provides: A law enforcement officer, a prosecuting attorney, or the Attorney General may require the disclosure of stored wire or electronic communications, as well as transactional records pertaining thereto, to the extent and under the procedures and conditions provided for by the laws of the United States. 3 OCGA § 16-11-67 provides: No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part. 4 18 USCA § 2703 (a), i...
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Dobbins v. State, 415 S.E.2d 168 (Ga. 1992).

Cited 39 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Mar 6, 1992 | 262 Ga. 161

...11-64. The state could not have recorded this conversation on its own *163 without having first obtained either an investigative warrant pursuant to OCGA § 16-11-64 or a valid consent of a party to the conversation. The evidence shows neither. OCGA § 16-11-67 provides that evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of Title 16, Article 3, Part 1, entitled Wiretapping, Eavesdropping, Surveillance, and Related Offenses, is not admissible in evidence....
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Anderson v. State, 475 S.E.2d 629 (Ga. 1996).

Cited 33 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Sep 23, 1996 | 267 Ga. 116, 96 Fulton County D. Rep. 3396

...dition for "obtaining" the electronic surveillance warrant and renders the evidence illegal and inadmissable in a criminal prosecution. See Williams v. State, 265 Ga. 471(1), 457 S.E.2d 665 (1995), which states that "obtained" in the context of OCGA § 16-11-67 includes not only the gathering of evidence but also its safeguarding....
...NOTES [1] OCGA § 5-7-1(a)(4) authorizes the State to directly appeal "[f]rom an order, decision, or judgment sustaining a motion to suppress evidence that is illegally seized in the case of motions made and ruled upon prior to the impaneling of a jury." [2] OCGA § 16-11-67 provides: "No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part." [3] OCGA § 5-7-1(a)(1) authorizes the State to directl...
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Ransom v. Ransom, 324 S.E.2d 437 (Ga. 1985).

Cited 28 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Jan 7, 1985 | 253 Ga. 656

...During discovery she became aware for the first time that husband possessed tape-recordings of her telephone conversations and intended to use them at the divorce trial to prove her infidelity during the marriage. Wife then filed a motion in limine, on the basis of OCGA §§ 16-11-62 (1) and 16-11-67, to prevent the admission of these tapes or their contents at trial....
...OCGA § 16-11-62 (1) provides, "It shall be unlawful for: (1) Any person in a clandestine manner intentionally to overhear, transmit or record, or attempt to overhear, transmit or record, the private conversations of another which shall originate in any private place." OCGA § 16-11-67 provides, "No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part." The trial court entered an order prohibiting use of the contents *657 of the tape for any purpose except impeachment....
...recordings. We are unable to say on the record before us that wife waived her right of privacy. 3. Wife's sole complaint is the trial court erred in ruling that the *659 contents of the tape recordings could be used for impeachment purposes as OCGA § 16-11-67 states, "No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part." We agree....
...I would hold that in enacting OCGA § 16-11-62 the legislature intended to deter those who sought to invade the individual's right to privacy. See Ga. L. 1967, pp. 844, 845, former Code Ann. § 26-2001, quoted in the majority opinion. In enacting OCGA § 16-11-67 the legislature effected an additional deterrent to those who sought to obtain evidence in violation of OCGA § 16-11-62....
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Hartman v. State, 469 S.E.2d 163 (Ga. 1996).

Cited 25 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Apr 29, 1996 | 266 Ga. 613, 96 Fulton County D. Rep. 1616

...A review of the record shows that the tape did impeach the testimony of Hartman and his sister and, therefore, was relevant and admissible in spite of the tape's negative reflection on Hartman's character. [6] 3. Hartman also contends that the tape was inadmissible under OCGA §§ 16-11-62 and 16-11-67....
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Registe v. State, 292 Ga. 154 (Ga. 2012).

Cited 23 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Nov 5, 2012 | 734 S.E.2d 19, 2012 Fulton County D. Rep. 3454

...s supporting a release of the telephone records. It must first be pointed out that the remedy sought by Registe, namely suppression of evidence, is not an available remedy under *157either OCGA § lG-ll-ee.Uor 18USC § 2702 (c) (4).1 2However, OCGA § 16-11-67 provides: “No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part [regarding wiretapping, eavesdropping, surveillance, and related offenses] shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove viol...
...ection shall be punishable as contempt.” 18 USC § 2707 allows a subscriber to file a civil action against any party who improperly releases covered records or information. For this reason, it is questionable whether OCGA § 16-11-66.1 or OCGA § 16-11-67 are applicable at all to this case, as the former statute appears to apply only to mandatory disclosures. We emphasize that the release of information in this case was voluntary and thereby governed by 18 USC § 2702 (c) (4)....
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Mobley v. State, 307 Ga. 59 (Ga. 2019).

Cited 22 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Oct 21, 2019

...Perhaps the statute could be understood to mean that those circumstances are, without more, also grounds for a court to grant such a motion, although the statute does not say so explicitly. But other statutory exclusionary rules are far less equivocal. See, e.g., OCGA §§ 16-11-67 (“No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part.”), 24-8-824 (“To make a confession admissible, it shall hav...
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Byers v. State, 857 S.E.2d 447 (Ga. 2021).

Cited 18 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Apr 5, 2021 | 311 Ga. 259

...as we would expect reasonable jurors to have done so as opposed to viewing it all in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict. 3 Byers does not challenge the State’s standing to seek exclusion of Wesley’s testimony. OCGA § 16-11-67 provides that “[n]o evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part [which includes OCGA § 16-11-62] shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part.” We previous...
...principles apply to attempts to exclude evidence on the ground that it was obtained in violation of OCGA § 16-11-62. See Hampton v. State, 295 Ga. 665, 668-670 (2) (763 SE2d 467) (2014) (defendant did not have standing to seek suppression under OCGA §§ 16-11-66.1 (a) and 16-11-67 of text messages associated with account that he had not shown was his; “[T]he focus of OCGA §§ 16-11-62 through 16-11-67 is the protection of individuals from invasion of their privacy....
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Rogers v. State, 717 S.E.2d 629 (Ga. 2011).

Cited 16 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Nov 7, 2011 | 290 Ga. 18, 2011 Fulton County D. Rep. 3428

...specific notice that such might occur. Compare Ransom v. Ransom, 253 Ga. 656, 657-658(1), 324 S.E.2d 437 (1985). Additionally, OCGA § 16-11-62(2)(A) contains "an express exception [to prohibitions on surveillance found in OCGA §§ 16-11-62 through 16-11-67] for recording the activities of another incarcerated in a jail, correctional institution or other facility in which a person who is charged or has been convicted is being held." Burgeson v....
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Zilke v. State, 299 Ga. 232 (Ga. 2016).

Cited 15 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Jun 20, 2016 | 787 S.E.2d 745

...Smith, 908 A2d 786, 788-790 (N.H. 2006). Moreover, OCGA § 20- 3-72 does not speak in terms of the admission or exclusion of evidence, and it is not apparent that any other statute directs the exclusion of evidence as a remedy for an extraterritorial arrest. Compare OCGA § 16-11-67 (“No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part [regulating wiretapping and electronic surveillance] shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part.”); OC...
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Ross v. State, 296 Ga. 636 (Ga. 2015).

Cited 15 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Feb 2, 2015 | 769 S.E.2d 43

...of her phone calls) under State law, as a defendant who lacks standing to challenge the admission into evidence of stored electronic records under the Fourth Amendment similarly lacks standing to challenge the admission of such records under OCGA § 16-11-67....
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Suggs v. State, 854 S.E.2d 674 (Ga. 2021).

Cited 9 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Feb 15, 2021 | 310 Ga. 762

...Accordingly, Appellant’s Batson claim fails. 11 4. Appellant also claims that the trial court erred in denying his motion in limine to exclude the audio recording that Pridgen secretly made of a conversation that he had with Appellant. Appellant relies on OCGA § 16-11-67, which says: “No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part [i.e., OCGA §§ 16-11-60 to 16-11-70] shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part.” Howeve...
...501, 501 (241 SE2d 213) (1978) (interpreting predecessor to OCGA § 16-11-62 (1)). Accord Fetty v. State, 268 Ga. 365, 366 (489 SE2d 813) (1997). Thus, Pridgen did not violate OCGA § 16-11-62 (1) when he made the audio recording of 12 his conversation with Appellant, and OCGA § 16-11-67 did not require the trial court to exclude the recording. 5....
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Rutter v. Rutter, 294 Ga. 1 (Ga. 2013).

Cited 6 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Oct 7, 2013 | 749 S.E.2d 657, 2013 Fulton County D. Rep. 3051

...It is to be applied to “protect all persons from invasions upon their privacy, including invasions made upon the privacy of one spouse by the other in a private place.” Ransom v. Ransom, 253 Ga. 656 (324 SE2d 437) (1985). Evidence obtained in violation of this Code section is inadmissible in any court of this State. OCGA § 16-11-67. This subparagraph states that, OCGA § 16-11-62 (2) notwithstanding, it is not unlawful “[t]o use for security purposes, crime prevention, or crime detection any device to observe, *2photograph, or record the activities of persons wh...
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Nuckles v. State, 853 S.E.2d 81 (Ga. 2020).

Cited 5 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Dec 21, 2020 | 310 Ga. 624

...Prior to her trial on those charges, Nuckles filed a motion seeking to exclude a video recording captured on a camera concealed in Dempsey’s room at the residential rehabilitation center where Nuckles worked, asserting that the recording was inadmissible under OCGA § 16-11-67 because she did not consent to its recording as required under OCGA § 16-11-62 (2)....
...consent of all persons observed, to observe, photograph, or record the activities of another which occur in any private place and out of public view[.] OCGA § 16-11-62 (2). Nuckles filed her motion to suppress the video recording pursuant to OCGA § 16-11-67, which provides: “No evidence obtained in a manner which violates any of the provisions of this part shall be admissible in any court of this state except to prove violations of this part.” The State argued in response, however, t...
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Williams v. State, 457 S.E.2d 665 (Ga. 1995).

Cited 4 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | May 30, 1995 | 265 Ga. 471

...Atty., Cordele, amici curiae. BENHAM, Presiding Justice. Williams's conviction for drug offenses depended in part on evidence developed from information gathered with a pen register. She based her motion to suppress that evidence on the provision in OCGA § 16-11-67 making inadmissible any evidence obtained in violation of the statutes controlling electronic surveillance....

Ross v. State (Ga. 2015).

Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Feb 2, 2015 | 265 Ga. 471

...of her phone calls) under State law, as a defendant who lacks standing to challenge the admission into evidence of stored electronic records under the Fourth Amendment similarly lacks standing to challenge the admission of such records under OCGA § 16-11-67....