1303. Interception and disclosure of wire, electronic, or oral..., LA R.S.

15:1303

West's Louisiana Statutes Annotated

Louisiana Revised Statutes
Title 15. Criminal Procedure (Refs & Annos)
Chapter 10. Electronic Surveillance (Refs & Annos)
Part II. Interception of Communications and Related Matters (Refs & Annos)
LSA-R.S. 15:1303
1303. Interception and disclosure of wire, electronic, or oral communications
Effective: August 1, 2012
Currentness
A. Except as otherwise specifically provided in this Chapter, it shall be unlawful for any person to:

(1) Willfully intercept, endeavor to intercept, or procure any other person to intercept or endeavor to intercept, any wire,
electronic or oral communication;

(2) Willfully use, endeavor to use, or procure any other person to use or endeavor to use, any electronic, mechanical, or other
device to intercept any oral communication when:

(a) Such device is affixed to, or otherwise transmits a signal through, a wire, cable, or other like connection used in wire or
electronic communication; or

(b) Such device transmits communications by radio or interferes with the transmission of such communication;

(3) Willfully disclose, or endeavor to disclose, to any other person the contents of any wire, electronic, or oral communication,
knowing or having reason to know that the information was obtained through the interception of a wire, electronic, or oral
communication in violation of this Subsection; or

(4) Willfully use, or endeavor to use, the contents of any wire, electronic, or oral communication, knowing or having reason
to know that the information was obtained through the interception of a wire, electronic, or oral communication in violation
of this Subsection.

B. Any person who violates the provisions of this Section shall be fined not more than ten thousand dollars and imprisoned for
not less than two years nor more than ten years at hard labor.

C. (1) It shall not be unlawful under this Chapter for an operator of a switchboard, or any officer, employee, or agent of any
communications common carrier, whose facilities are used in the transmission of a wire communication, to intercept, disclose,
or use that communication in the normal course of his employment while engaged in any activity which is a necessary incident
to the rendition of his service or to the protection of the rights or property of the carrier of such communication; however, such

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 1303. Interception and disclosure of wire, electronic, or oral..., LA R.S. 15:1303

communications common carriers shall not utilize service observing or random monitoring, except for mechanical or service
quality control checks.

(2) It shall not be unlawful under this Chapter for an officer, employee, or agent of the Federal Communications Commission,
in the normal course of his employment and in discharge of the monitoring responsibilities exercised by the commission in
the enforcement of Chapter 5 of Title 47 of the United States Code, to intercept a wire or electronic communication, or oral
communication transmitted by radio, or to disclose or use the information thereby obtained.

(3) It shall not be unlawful under this Chapter for a person acting under color of law to intercept a wire, electronic, or oral
communication, where such person is a party to the communication or one of the parties to the communication has given prior
consent to such interception. Such a person acting under color of law is authorized to possess equipment used under such
circumstances.

(4) It shall not be unlawful under this Chapter for a person not acting under color of law to intercept a wire, electronic, or oral
communication where such person is a party to the communication or where one of the parties to the communication has given
prior consent to such interception, unless such communication is intercepted for the purpose of committing any criminal or
tortious act in violation of the constitution or laws of the United States or of the state or for the purpose of committing any
other injurious act.

(5) It shall not be unlawful under this Chapter:

(a) For the ultimate receiver of wire or electronic communication, or an investigative or law enforcement officer to use a pen
register or trap and trace device as provided in Part III of this Chapter.

(b) For a provider of electronic communication services to record the fact that a wire or electronic communication was initiated
or completed in order to protect such provider, or another provider furnishing service toward the completion of the wire or
electronic communication, or a user of that service, from fraudulent, unlawful, or abusive use of such service.

(c) To use a device which captures the incoming electronic or other impulses which identify the numbers of an instrument from
which a wire communication was transmitted.

(6) A person or entity providing electronic communication services to the public shall not intentionally divulge the contents of
any communication while in transmission of that service to any person or entity other than an addressee or intended recipient
of such communication or an agent of such addressee or intended recipient except:

(a) As otherwise authorized by federal or state law.

(b) To a person employed or authorized, or whose facilities are used, to forward such communication to its destination.

(c) Any electronic communication inadvertently obtained by the service provider and which appears to pertain to the commission
of a crime, if such divulgence is made to a law enforcement agency.

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 1303. Interception and disclosure of wire, electronic, or oral..., LA R.S. 15:1303

(7) It shall not be unlawful under this Chapter for an officer or investigator of a law enforcement agency to intercept, conduct,
use, or disclose electronic, wire, or oral communications obtained during a hostage situation or situation involving a barricaded
individual. For the purposes of this Section, hostage situation means any situation which involves the unlawful abduction or
restraint of one or more individuals with intent to restrict their freedom. For the purposes of this Section, barricaded individual
means any situation that involves the use of a residence, or other structure, belonging to another to seek refuge from law
enforcement after attempting or committing a crime or threatening suicide.

D. (1) Any investigative or law enforcement officer who, by any means authorized by this Chapter, has obtained knowledge
of the contents of any wire, oral, or electronic communication, or evidence derived therefrom, may disclose the contents to
another investigative or law enforcement officer to the extent that the disclosure is appropriate to the proper performance of
the official duties of the officer making or receiving the disclosure.

(2) Any investigative or law enforcement officer who, by any means authorized by this Chapter, has obtained knowledge of
the contents of any wire, oral, or electronic communication or evidence derived therefrom may use the contents to the extent
the use is appropriate to the proper performance of his official duties.

(3) Any person who has received, by any means authorized by this Chapter, any information concerning a wire, oral, or electronic
communication, or evidence derived therefrom intercepted in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter may disclose the
contents of that communication or such derivative evidence while giving testimony under oath or affirmation in any proceeding
held under the authority of the United States or of any state or political subdivision thereof.

(4) No otherwise privileged wire, oral, or electronic communication intercepted in accordance with, or in violation of, the
provisions of this Chapter shall lose its privileged character.

E. Upon receipt of the information or evidence sought by the interception, the interception shall cease.

Credits
Added by Acts 1985, No. 859, 1, eff. July 23, 1985. Amended by Acts 1991, No. 795, 1, eff. July 22, 1991; Acts 2001, No.
403, 2, eff. June 15, 2001; Acts 2006, No. 292, 1; Acts 2012, No. 727, 2.

Editors' Notes
AMELIORATIVE PENALTY PROVISIONS; RETROACTIVITY;
AMENDMENT OF SENTENCE; TIME LIMITATIONS--ACTS 2006, NO. 45
<R.S. 15:308, as enacted by Acts 2006, No. 45, 1, provides:>
<A. (1) The legislature hereby declares that the provisions of Act No. 403 of the 2001 Regular Session of the
Legislature provided for more lenient penalty provisions for certain enumerated crimes and that these penalty
provisions were to be applied prospectively.>
<(2) The legislature hereby further declares that Act No. 45 of the 2002 First Extraordinary Session of the Legislature
revised errors in penalty provisions for certain statutes which were amended by Act No. 403 of the 2001 Regular

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 1303. Interception and disclosure of wire, electronic, or oral..., LA R.S. 15:1303

Session of the Legislature and that these revisions were to be applied retroactively to June 15, 2001, and applied to
any crime committed subject to such revised penalties on and after such date.>
<B. In the interest of fairness in sentencing, the legislature hereby further declares that the more lenient penalty
provisions provided for in Act No. 403 of the 2001 Regular Session of the Legislature and Act No. 45 of the 2002
First Extraordinary Session of the Legislature shall apply to the class of persons who committed crimes, who were
convicted, or who were sentenced according to the following provisions: R.S. 14:56.2(D), 62.1(B) and (C), 69.1(B)
(2), 70.1(B), 82(D), 91.7(C), 92.2(B), 92.3(C), 106(G)(2)(a) and (3), 106.1(C)(2), 119(D), 119.1(D), 122.1(D), 123(C)
(1) and (2), 352, and 402.1(B), R.S. 15:529.1(A)(1)(b)(ii) and (c)(ii), 1303(B), and 1304(B), R.S. 27:262(C), (D), and
(E), 309(C), and 375(C), R.S. 40:966(B), (C)(1), (D), (E), (F) and (G), 967(B)(1), (2), (3), and (4)(a) and (b), and (F)
(1), (2), and (3), 979(A), 981, 981.1, 981.2(B) and (C), and 981.3(A)(1) and (E), and Code of Criminal Procedure
Art. 893(A) prior to June 15, 2001, provided that such application ameliorates the person's circumstances.>
<C. Such persons shall be entitled to apply to the Louisiana Risk Review Panel pursuant to R.S. 15:574.22.>

PROSPECTIVE EFFECT OF ACTS 2001, NO. 403

<Acts 2001, No. 403, 2, effective June 15, 2001, amends subsec. B of this section. Section 6 of Act 403 provides:>
<Section 6. The provisions of this Act shall only have prospective effect.>

Notes of Decisions (47)

LSA-R.S. 15:1303, LA R.S. 15:1303
Titles 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 16, 19, 20, 21, 24, 41, 50, 52, 53, 54 and 55 of the Revised Statutes and the Civil Code and Code
of Criminal Procedure are current through the 2015 Regular Session with Acts effective on or before December 31, 2015. All
other statutes and codes are current through the 2014 Regular Session.
End of Document

2015 Thomson Reuters. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.

2015 Thomson Reuters. No claim to original U.S. Government Works.