Vermilion Parish, LA Privacy & Surveillance: Recording & Consent Laws (2026)

Vermilion Parish Code § 2-1 governs video or audio recording devices in buildings or at facilities owned by the Police Jury, the parish governing body. Subsection (a) prohibits the use of a recording device without the prior consent of the Police Jury or the authorized occupant of the facility. Subsection (b) adds an order and decorum rule: even approved recording has to be done so that it does not disrupt the business of the Police Jury or any authorized occupant. Subsection (c) lists four exemptions: recording done with the consent of the Police Jury or the occupant, security systems the Police Jury or the occupant has approved, court reporters during judicial proceedings, and devices used by law enforcement personnel while on duty.

Section 2-23 covers filming or audio recording of public meetings. Notice of intent to film or audio record any meeting must reach the Police Jury or committee before the meeting begins. The recording must not disrupt the order or decorum of the meeting. The Police Jury reserves the right to designate an area of its meeting room where filming equipment is used. No additional lighting is allowed during filming, and normal room lighting cannot be altered to help filming without the Police Jury's prior consent. Subsection (e) bars publishing or broadcasting film, video footage or audio of a Police Jury or committee meeting in an edited form that misrepresents how the meeting was conducted or what happened during it.

Both sections carry a state law reference to R.S. 42:23, the right to record public meetings. Neither section speaks to recording officers or officials at other places in unincorporated Vermilion Parish. They reach Police Jury buildings, Police Jury facilities and Police Jury or committee meetings.