Silver--California Vehicle Code(CVC) Section
28150 states that it is illegal to have such a device if it is "designed for, or is capable of, jamming, scrambling, neutralizing, disabling or otherwise interfering with radar, laser, etc."
In my experience, the cops in California generally will not yank your detector if you can convince them that it is a passive device, and NOT active. If it is passive, and the cop takes it, you should also receive a citation which will permit you to discuss the matter with a judge.
If the cop takes the detector and doesn't give you a citation, I would go directly to the station and report the matter to the officer in charge. It is an unconstitutional violation to seize property without due process, and the cop most likely was intending to keep the detector for himself, or pass it on to one of his friends.
If you are given a citation, the next hurdle is to convince the man in the black dress that the detector does not do anything except enable you to be a safer driver, and particularly is not capable of "neutralizing"
the cop radar because it is an entirely passive device.
Good luck on this last item because my experience with most Muni Court judges in Los Angeles is that they are all scientific
experts who couldn't tell you the freezing and boiling points of water at sea level, let alone decide whether your detector is passive or not. But you might get lucky on this and get your property back.
If you lose all the way around, you'll pay a
fine, probably a couple of hundred dollars, maybe less.
If you have further legal questions, I suggest you search for "California Vehicle
Code," which has a complete index at the top, and a good search system.
Hope this helps, and makes some sense.
PS--To everybody else--This is California
law, and may or may not apply in your state,
so check your own state vehicle code for any
restrictions that may exist.
[ June 01, 2001: Message edited by: rseifer ]
