The one FCC pirate enforcement that I witnessed, about 7 years ago, was very swift. The process may have been accelerated because one of the few remaining FCC field offices is located here in the Denver area.
The FM pirate had been on the air for less than 3 weeks. I know this because I happened to witness the antenna as it was being erected on a local music store. Of course I didn't know it was a pirate. It was a typical VHF vertical antenna mounted on a 30 foot guyed mast. I presumed it to be a two-way radio system for the business. The FCC complaint came from a Denver area FM station who was receiving interference complaints from listeners. The pirate was apparently operating on a first adjacent channel. The FCC agents called the 911 center (where I was a part-time employee) from the scene at about 3:00 in the afternoon requesting police assistance. The local police accompanied the FCC agents who entered the business and asked to inspect the radio equipment. The employee on duty claimed to know little about the radio station except that it belonged to the business owner. The station was automated so nobody was actually present to operate it. The employee willingly agreed to the inspection. The agents determined the operation to be illegal, shut it off, and confiscated the equipment on the spot. The entire operation took less than 3 hours. The next day I noticed that even the antenna was gone. Patrick Griffith, CBT CBNT CRO Westminster CO http://community.webtv.net/N0NNK/ http://community.webtv.net/AM-DXer/ _______________________________________________ IRCA mailing list [email protected] http://montreal.kotalampi.com/mailman/listinfo/irca Opinions expressed in messages on this mailing list are those of the original contributors and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the IRCA, its editors, publishing staff, or officers For more information: http://www.ircaonline.org To Post a message: [email protected]
