An Illinois judge ruled the state\u2019s eavesdropping law unconstitutional as applied to a man who faced up to to 75 years in prison for secretly recording his encounters with police officers and a judge.Share: \u00b7 Facebook\u00b7 LinkedIn\u00b7 EmailPrintLink\u201cA statute intended to prevent unwarranted intrusions into a citizen\u2019s privacy cannot be used as a shield for public officials who cannot assert a comparable right of privacy in their public duties,\u201d the judge wrote in his decision dismissing the five counts of eavesdropping charges against defendant Michael Allison.\u201cSuch action impedes the free flow of information concerning public officials and violates the First Amendment right to gather such information,\u201d he wrote.The ruling is the most recent development raising questions about Illinois\u2019 strict eavesdropping statute, which makes it a felony to use a device to audio record or overhear a conversation without the consent of all parties involved, regardless of the circumstances of the interaction.<\/p>\n