Recreational Drones: Brentwood vs Richmond

California Civil Code 1708.8 makes it a civil tort to use a drone to capture images or recordings of someone in a private setting. Brentwood also enforces trespass and peeping laws against invasive drone use. Flying a drone low over a private backyard to record can result in civil and criminal liability.

California Civil Code §1708.8 (the anti-paparazzi statute) creates physical and constructive invasion of privacy claims against drone operators who capture images of people engaged in private activity. Richmond police also enforce Penal Code §647(j) (illegal surveillance) when drones record into homes or backyards.