Tennessee Laws on Recording Police: Your Rights and Limits

Eight federal appeals courts have held that recording on-duty police in public is protected First Amendment activity, but the Sixth Circuit (covering Tennessee) has not, so the right is not clearly established here; Tennessee state law separately lets you audio record any conversation you participate in under Tenn. Code Ann. section 39-13-601, the one-party consent wiretapping statute, without notifying the officer.

No Tennessee law makes it a crime to record police doing their jobs in public, and state law lets you record any conversation you have with an officer. Whether the First Amendment protects filming officers you are not speaking with is less settled in Tennessee than in most of the country, because the Sixth Circuit has not decided it.

This guide covers the legal framework for recording police in Tennessee, practical guidelines for doing so safely, body camera laws, and what to do if an officer tells you to stop recording.

The Legal Right to Record Police in Tennessee

First Amendment Protection

Recording government officials, including police officers, performing their public duties is widely treated by federal courts as First Amendment activity, though the strength of that protection varies by circuit. Courts across the country have recognized that recording police activity is a form of protected expression and newsgathering that serves the public interest.

Eight federal appeals courts (the First, Second, Third, Fifth, Seventh, Ninth, Tenth, and Eleventh Circuits) have held that the First Amendment protects recording police officers doing their jobs in public, subject to reasonable time, place, and manner limits, and the Fourth Circuit has held that livestreaming a police traffic stop is protected speech. The Supreme Court has not ruled on the question, and the Sixth, Eighth, and D.C. Circuits have not recognized the right. The U.S. Department of Justice has also taken the position in multiple cases that recording police is protected under the First Amendment.

The Sixth Circuit and Tennessee

Tennessee falls within the jurisdiction of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. The Sixth Circuit has not issued a published decision recognizing a First Amendment right to record police. In Crawford v. Geiger, 656 F. App'x 190 (6th Cir. 2016), an unpublished decision, the plaintiffs claimed officers stopped them from recording police, but the district court granted summary judgment against those First Amendment claims, and the Sixth Circuit's opinion addressed only two officers' qualified immunity on excessive-force and unreasonable-seizure claims, so it does not decide whether the First Amendment protects recording police. In Hils v. Davis, 52 F.4th 997 (6th Cir. 2022), a published decision, the court held that police officers had no First Amendment right to record their own internal misconduct interviews; it did not address the public's right to record officers. Because no published Sixth Circuit decision recognizes the right, it is not clearly established in Tennessee, which matters for any damages suit against an officer. Tennessee's own state one-party consent law under T.C.A. § 39-13-601 independently supports the right to record one's own interactions with officers.

Tennessee's One-Party Consent Law

Under Tenn. Code Ann. section 39-13-601, Tennessee is a one-party consent state for recording communications. When you are interacting with a police officer, you are a party to that conversation. Your own consent satisfies the one-party requirement, making it legal to record the interaction without notifying the officer.

For recording police activity you are not directly involved in, such as filming an arrest from across the street, the wiretapping statute is less relevant because public police activity does not carry a reasonable expectation of privacy. Video recording without audio capture does not implicate the wiretapping statute at all.

What You Can Record

Your Own Police Interactions

You can record any direct interaction you have with law enforcement, including:

• Traffic stops where you are the driver or a passenger
• Encounters on the street or in public spaces
• Questioning by officers at your home (at the doorstep or threshold)
• Interactions at DUI checkpoints
• Conversations during a search of your vehicle (if you are present)
• Any situation where an officer is speaking with you

Police Activity in Public

You can record police activity you observe in public, even when you are not directly involved:

• Arrests taking place on public streets or sidewalks
• Officers responding to incidents in public view
• Police interactions at public events, protests, or demonstrations
• Officers conducting searches or seizures in public
• Police pursuits visible from public property

Protests and Public Demonstrations

No Tennessee law bars journalists, activists, bystanders, or anyone else lawfully present from recording protests, demonstrations, and police responses to them, though in the Sixth Circuit a First Amendment right to do so is not clearly established. Tennessee's 25-foot buffer law, described below, does not ban recording, but it can limit how close you may approach an officer who has ordered you to stop approaching while handling a lawful traffic stop, an active crime-scene investigation, or an ongoing and immediate threat to public safety.

Practical Guidelines for Recording Police

Do

• Keep your hands visible at all times, especially during traffic stops
• Remain calm and respectful throughout the interaction
• Stay at a safe distance that does not interfere with police operations
• Announce that you are recording if you choose to, though it is not legally required
• Use your phone or camera openly rather than concealing it
• Back up your recording to cloud storage as soon as possible
• Know your rights and be prepared to calmly assert them

Do Not

• Physically interfere with officers performing their duties
• Cross police tape or enter areas that have been restricted for safety
• Ignore lawful orders to move back to a safe distance
• Reach for your phone suddenly during a traffic stop without telling the officer what you are doing
• Touch officers, their equipment, or their vehicles while recording
• Obstruct emergency medical treatment to get a better angle
• Trespass on private property to record police activity

The Interference Standard

The key legal line is between recording and interfering. Recording is not itself a crime in Tennessee. Interfering with police operations is. Tennessee law prohibits obstruction of justice and resisting arrest. Under Tenn. Code Ann. section 39-16-602, it is illegal to intentionally prevent or obstruct a law enforcement officer, or someone acting at an officer's direction, from carrying out a stop, frisk, halt, arrest, or search by using force against the officer or another person.

Simply holding up a phone and recording from a reasonable distance does not use force, so it does not meet that statute's elements. No Tennessee statute makes recording police a crime, but officers can give lawful orders, such as an order to stop approaching under the 25-foot law described below.

Tennessee's 25-Foot Buffer Law

Since July 1, 2025, Tennessee law (Tenn. Code Ann. 39-16-612, enacted by Public Chapter 409 of 2025) makes it a Class B misdemeanor to intentionally approach within 25 feet of a law enforcement officer after the officer has ordered you to stop approaching or to retreat. It applies only while the officer is lawfully engaged in official duties involving a lawful traffic stop, an active investigation of the scene of an alleged crime, or an ongoing and immediate threat to public safety. It is an affirmative defense that the order was not received or understood and could not have been under the circumstances.

The law restricts approaching, not recording. If an officer gives you a stop-approaching order in one of those situations, the lower-risk choice is to stop and keep recording from where you are or from farther back.

News organizations challenged the law in federal court (Gannett Co. v. Long, M.D. Tenn. No. 3:25-cv-00830). The district court denied a preliminary injunction on February 17, 2026, and the Sixth Circuit (No. 26-5182) heard oral argument on October 21, 2026. At that argument, a lawyer for the Metropolitan Government of Nashville told the panel that Nashville's police chief has said he will not enforce the law while the litigation is pending. As of November 1, 2026, we have not found a Sixth Circuit decision or any court order blocking the law.

What If Police Tell You to Stop Recording?

Know Your Rights

If a police officer tells you to stop recording, it is important to understand your rights:

• You are not legally required to stop recording your own interaction with police in Tennessee
• You can politely decline by saying something like "I am exercising my right to record this interaction"
• Do not physically resist if an officer attempts to take your device
• Remember badge numbers and names if possible
• File a complaint afterward through the appropriate channels

Can Police Seize Your Phone?

The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Riley v. California (2014) established that police generally need a warrant to search the contents of a cell phone seized during an arrest, although they may hold the phone while they get one. This protection extends to recordings stored on your device. Riley does not address an officer's request that you delete a recording or unlock your phone, but you do not have to agree to either, and deleting or destroying your recording can support a civil rights claim.

If police seize your phone without a warrant and without your consent, the seizure may violate the Fourth Amendment. Any evidence obtained from an illegal seizure could be suppressed in court.

Remedies for Violations

If your right to record is violated by police in Tennessee, you may have several avenues for relief:

• Internal affairs complaint with the officer's department
• Civilian review board if the municipality has one
• Federal civil rights lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. section 1983 for violation of your constitutional rights
• State tort claims for unlawful seizure of your property
• Complaint to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation if the conduct constitutes a crime

Tennessee Body Camera Laws

The Tennessee Body-Worn Camera Framework

Body camera footage access in Tennessee is governed by T.C.A. § 10-7-504(u), which makes certain law enforcement body camera video confidential (for example, footage of minors in K-12 schools or child care settings) while other footage remains subject to public records requests. Public Chapter 916 of 2022 had set subsection (u) to be deleted on July 1, 2027, but Public Chapter 672 of 2026 deleted that expiration clause, (u)(5), so subsection (u) no longer has an end date. We found no Tennessee statute that requires police to use body cameras or sets when they must be turned on or how long footage is kept; agencies that use them set those rules in their own policies, so ask the agency for its body camera policy. The access rules in subsection (u) are:

• Under T.C.A. § 10-7-504(u)(1), video is confidential when it shows minors in a K-12 school, child care agency or program, preschool, or nursery school; the interior of a facility licensed under Title 33 or Title 68; or the interior of a private residence that is not being investigated as a crime scene
• Under (u)(4), these limits do not restrict access by law enforcement agencies, courts, or other government agencies performing official functions
• Under T.C.A. § 10-7-504(u)(3), an agency may not withhold a whole record because part of it is confidential under subsection (u); the confidential portion must be redacted before access is granted

Public Access to Body Camera Footage

Body camera footage in Tennessee is generally considered a public record under the Tennessee Public Records Act (Tenn. Code Ann. section 10-7-503). However, exemptions may limit access:

• The body camera categories in section 10-7-504(u)(1): minors in schools and child care settings, the interior of licensed mental health or health care facilities, and the interior of a private residence that is not a crime scene
• Other exemptions in the Public Records Act, and agencies often withhold investigative records while a criminal case is pending; ask the agency which exemption it is relying on

To request body camera footage, you can submit a public records request to the law enforcement agency. The Office of Open Records Counsel within the Tennessee Comptroller's Office provides guidance on public records access.

Dashboard Camera Footage

Law enforcement dashboard camera footage is subject to similar rules as body camera footage. It is generally a public record, subject to the same exemptions for ongoing investigations and privacy concerns.

Recording Police in Specific Situations

During a Traffic Stop

You can record a traffic stop in Tennessee, whether you are the driver, a passenger, or an observer:

• As the driver: You can use your phone to record, but avoid reaching for it without telling the officer. Place it on the dashboard before the officer approaches if possible.
• As a passenger: You have the same right to record as the driver.
• As a bystander: You can film from the sidewalk or your own vehicle at a safe distance.

During an Arrest

You can record an arrest in progress, whether it is your own arrest or someone else's. If you are being arrested, continuing to hold your phone may not be practical. Consider activating a livestream before the arrest so the recording is preserved even if your phone is seized.

At Your Home

When police come to your door, you can record the interaction. If police enter your home with a warrant, you can continue recording as long as you do not physically obstruct the search. If officers enter without a warrant and without consent, recording the interaction provides important evidence for any later legal challenge.

At Protests and Public Events

Recording police at protests is not itself a crime in Tennessee, so recording alone is not a lawful basis for an arrest. Because the right to record is not clearly established in the Sixth Circuit, though, an officer sued for stopping a recording may have a qualified-immunity defense. If police issue a dispersal order, you must comply with the order, but you can continue recording while doing so.

Penalties for Interfering With Police

While recording is legal, interfering with police operations is not. Relevant Tennessee statutes include:

Recording alone does not constitute any of these offenses. An officer who arrests someone solely for recording may face a civil rights suit, although in Tennessee qualified immunity is a significant hurdle because the right to record is not clearly established in the Sixth Circuit.

Tennessee Recording Laws by Topic

Phone Call Recording | Audio Recording | Video Recording | Workplace Recording | Recording Police | Security Cameras | Recording in Public | Landlord-Tenant | Dashcam Laws | Schools | Medical Recording | Voyeurism & Hidden Cameras

Back to Tennessee Recording Laws

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can I legally record police officers in Tennessee?

Generally, yes. No Tennessee law makes recording police in public a crime, and the state's one-party consent law lets you record your own conversations with officers. The Sixth Circuit, which covers Tennessee, has not issued a published decision recognizing a First Amendment right to record police in public, so in Tennessee the right is not clearly established for a damages suit, although eight other federal appeals courts have recognized it. Record openly from a safe distance and do not interfere.

Do I have to tell a police officer I am recording in Tennessee?

No. Tennessee is a one-party consent state, so you do not need to notify the officer that you are recording your interaction. However, announcing that you are recording can sometimes help de-escalate a situation.

Can police confiscate my phone for recording them in Tennessee?

It depends. Officers can seize your phone without a warrant in some situations, such as incident to a lawful arrest, but under Riley v. California they generally need a warrant before they can search its contents, although they may hold the phone while they get one. Riley does not address requests to delete a recording or unlock your phone, but you do not have to agree to either. If your phone is searched unlawfully, the evidence may be suppressed and you may have a civil rights claim.

Can I be arrested for recording police in Tennessee?

Recording alone is not a crime in Tennessee. However, if you physically interfere with police operations, obstruct an officer, or trespass while recording, you could be arrested for those separate offenses. Simply holding up a phone and recording from a reasonable distance is not a crime in Tennessee, though in the Sixth Circuit a First Amendment right to record police is not clearly established.

How do I obtain police body camera footage in Tennessee?

You can submit a public records request to the law enforcement agency under the Tennessee Public Records Act. Body camera footage is generally a public record, though exemptions may apply for active investigations, privacy concerns, and footage involving minors.