Mislabeling food in California is a law that usually only impacts people who own or operate things like coffee shops, delis, grocery stores, and restaurants. It doesn’t matter how badly the food was mislabeled, if evidence of mislabeling exists, the people involved will be arrested and charged with mislabeling of food. If convicted, they’ll not only have a permanent criminal record, it’s unlikely that they’ll ever be able to find employment in the food industry ever again.The issue of mislabeling food in California is dealt with in Health & Safety Code 114087 HS.The law states:“(a) Food offered for human consumption shall be honestly presented in a way that does not mislead or misinform the consumer.(b) Food or color additives, colored overwraps, lights or other misleading artificial means shall not be used to misrepresent the true appearance, color, or quality of food.”There are several different reasons ways that a business can get into trouble for mislabeling food.These include:
  • A retailer taking food that has either passed its expiration date or is actually meant for pets and passing it off as food that is fit for human consumption
  • Labeling food in such a way that it results in the consumer not having the proper information about things like quality, calories, or even accurate ingredients.

Eavesdropping is something we’ve all done at some point in our lives. Normally, it involves staying quiet and remaining shrouded in mystery while we listen to someone discuss either ourselves or someone we know. In most cases, eavesdropping is fairly harmless, however, there are some circumstances where your eavesdropping could result in you facing criminal charges.The challenge with eavesdropping in California is that the state is a “two-party consent” state. That means that California lawmakers feel that when it comes to having confidential communications in a space where the people involved in the conversation have a reasonable expectation of privacy, eavesdropping is prohibited, particularly if the eavesdropper hopes to gain something from the information they learn while spying on the conversation.The topic of eavesdropping in California is dealt with in California Penal Code 632 PC. It’s important to note that while this law does discuss eavesdropping, it does clarify that in legal cases, the eavesdropper had to have done more than simply overhear a private conversation. They must have made a concentrated effort to eavesdrop. Examples of this would be using a recording device or amplifier to catch all elements of the conversation.The California law specifically states that,
    “a person who, intentionally and without the consent of all parties to a confidential communication, uses an electronic amplifying or recording device to eavesdrop upon or record the confidential communication, whether the communication is carried on among the parties in the presence of one another or by means of a telegraph, telephone, or other device, except a radio, shall be punished.”
Shouse law provided examples of what California lawmakers consider illegal eavesdropping.These samples include:
  • “recording an employer’s conversations when they’re speaking to other employees.
  • recording the conversation of a hotel guest while you are in the hallway/another room/beneath their hotel window.
  • using a laptop in an intimate restaurant to record the conversation between two patrons”