Court rules raid that shut 'pirate' radio station was legal

[Judi Lynn]

SAN FRANCISCO
Court rules raid that shut 'pirate' radio station was legal
Bob Egelko, Chronicle Staff Writer

Thursday, March 1, 2007

Federal agents acted legally in raiding the Castro neighborhood office of San Francisco Liberation Radio in 2003 and seizing equipment that was used to run the unlicensed, low-power "pirate" FM station, a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday.

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Liberation Radio was not entitled to advance notice or a hearing before the raid by federal marshals and Federal Communications Commission representatives.

The station had been denied a federal license and accused the agency of a politically motivated crackdown on so-called micro-broadcasters. Liberation Radio, which had broadcast music and "radical progressive'' politics on 93.7 FM for 10 years, was driven off the airwaves by the raid and now operates over the Internet.

"Neither broadcasters nor listeners have a First Amendment right to engage in or listen to unlicensed broadcasts,'' the three-judge panel said in Wednesday's ruling, rejecting the station's argument that seizure of broadcast equipment without a hearing violates free expression.

The court also said advance notice might have allowed owners to move, hide or destroy equipment that was legally subject to forfeiture.
(snip/...)

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/01/BAGO7OD2E71.DTL&type=politics

[Ian David]

1. It's a good thing pirate radio isn't using MP3 players attached to small transmitters...

mounted on free-flying, un-tethered helium balloons.

I estimate you could throw a disposable pirate radio dirigible into the air for about fifty bucks a pop, and they could stay aloft for maybe three days at a time.

Or until the FCC starts launching guys in helicopters to shoot them down.

I'm glad nobody is doing that sort of illegal activity.

[dipsydoodle]

2. But extremely good of you

to provide constructive suggestions on the issue. :rofl:

[Ian David]

3. The FAA can only regulate object flying over 500 feet

So, technically, the balloon itself wouldn't be in violation of air traffic rules below that altitude, unless it wanders near an airport.

I'm just saying.

[Tesha]

5. Horatio Caine would catch you.

And battery life versus weight would be a challenge,
even if you were just radiating a (say) 5 watt signal.
And solar cells are too expensive to throw away in
this fashion while fuel cells might be considered
a hazard in an uncontrolled re-entry to earth.

Tesha

[dipsydoodle]

7. Could be worse

[Ian David]

8. Unless the balloon suddenly popped, it would simply loose altitude, slowly, over several days

Once on the ground, the person who launched it could attempt to retrieve it using the same method the FCC would use to track it-- triangulate. Perhaps it could even include a separate tracker, like the ones they put in hobbyist model rockets?

It could also be equipped with a parachute, or a secondary "emergency" helium balloon that would slow descent in the event of "sudden buoyancy loss."

Another precaution could be to include a ballast balloon, partially filled with regular air or Nitrogen, to keep the balloon from flying too high.

The Balloon Radio Pirate would have an advantage in retrieving the transmitter that the FCC wouldn't-- they would know from where and when the balloon was launched, and should be able to better estimate its eventual landing spot.

[Tesha]

9. Trying to recover it is a tradeoff

Trying to recover it is a tradeoff:

o You'd be most likely to get caught during the
recovery phase

o But you'd be removing the principal physical
evidence of your crime.

Like I said, it wouldn't be too long before Hortaio Caine
caught up with you either way.

Tesha

[Ian David]

10. They could also launch a bunch of decoys along with the real transmitter.

As well as drop a bunch of decoy transmitters around when they're getting ready to make their retrieval.

But yes, you'd be most likely to get caught while retrieving the balloon.

But they'd have to prove that you were responsible for launching it.

You could just be a curious citizen who spotted a weird balloon crashing in the woods.

Or, you could be a curious technophile carrying around tracking equipment who has been trying to find the pirate balloons for the intellectual challenge of it.

It would be important that the people responsible for LAUNCHING the balloon have people with plausible deniability trying to RECOVER the balloons.

No crime would (in my personal, non-lawyer opinion) be easily provable until the equipment is turned-over from the hunter back to the launcher.

"Hey, I'm not a radio pirate... I just wanted to see if I could find one of the balloons to sell it on Ebay, man!"

In short:

Pirates launch balloon.
Hunters find balloon.
Equipment returned via secret dead-drop.

Again, it's a good thing nobody is doing that, because it may be against the law. Don't do it.

And when you don't do this, also don't call yourself "The Blue Orchestra."

[Tesha]

12. "They" can get search warrants.

"They" can get search warrants.

You just happen to have balloons, helium, disposable MP3
players, FM transmitters, tracking equipment, traces of
vinyl-coated fabric all over your car, etc.

Tesha

[soothsayer]

11. sounds like radio marti

[slackmaster]

4. Our excellent pirate station in San Diego got shut down recently too

FCC raided the private residence where the transmitter was located, seized equipment, and sent the landlord (who was not involved in the operation at all) a letter demanding payment of a $10,000 fine. He's retained an attorney and is fighting it.

http://www.pirate969.org

[Judi Lynn]

6. Terrific. Glad to use this link. Thanks. n/t

[mitchum]

13. "our friends" at the Corporation For Public Broadcasting has led the fight AGAINST...

low-power transmission for more than 20 years.
I wonder why...