Federal courts have said that Illinois’ prohibition on recording police officers in public is unconstitutional, and legislators should take the opportunity to rewrite the state’s eavesdropping law.

The general rule of thumb is, if you can be seen in public, you can be photographed in public.

However, in Illinois, if you can be heard in public, it’s a crime for someone to record your voice. Recording the voice of a police officer doing their job in public is considered a felony punishable by as many as 15 years in prison under the state’s eavesdropping law, passed in 1961.