@asparkofpyrokravte I don't think pence rule applies here. I am in a pretty bad situation where I have no friends here and I am trying to have a conversation with my spouse when she comes back from overseas that I want to separate.

I don't want any accusations of DV if she does that.

If you are initiating divorce you are in a pretty unique situation. A voice recorder is a good idea, but ideally you'd have the conversation somewhere that isn't completely private.

Also check on the recording laws of your country, and make sure the thing works

initating separation

Ah, right

It isn't divorce yet

Im from SC so the grounds that I only have is 1 year separation

^ though even if it's illegal to record, chances are no one will know unless you have to use the recording, and its worth it to record it because you'll get a lot less trouble with that than a DV charge

my situation is kind of unique, fucked myself signing the affadvit of support.

That is a good point, but if that is the case and you have time to prepare you'd just have a witness instead and skip the illegal step

The voice recorder is if you have to do day-to-day stuff in the house when you can't get a witness

It's worth mentioning that having someone there at the time OR recording aren't going to stop past accusations of DV

that is very worth mentioning, yes.

jesus, I am out of it.

This situation is over my head

I'm sorry mate. Life's a bitch and then you die. But make the most of it for yourself ok

It isn't quite as bad as it seems

You probably do want to consult a lawyer before she knows you are going to separate

If your lawyer tells you to screw her over don't listen (though tbh, you should have pretty little opportunity for that)

Audio recording is indeed a great step

im speaking to one

If she doesn't know, most of the false accusations would probably be pretty easy to disprove

South Carolina is a one-party consent state, so you're good on that front

yeah, I don't need to let her know when I record.

for some reason, I feel like voice is weak source of evidence

Eh, it isn't going to catch some things

but

It will catch almost all relevant things

So long as you've got a mic that picks up lots of stuff

Any sound of someone hitting another will be caught

If you're speaking calmly the whole time

that'll be caught

if you're trying to diffuse that will be caught

if you object to her hitting you, it is going to be hella hard for her to claim that you were the one who actually hit her

Yeah, I am worried about when I leave the apt to get out of the situation, then she assaults herself then points the finger.

She still has to give a day and time

if your mic catches the sound of your car door closing

well, you weren't in the house

if she claims it happened in the morning, your mic should lend credibillity to your claim that nothing serious happened at that time

Let's be real mate, although false accusations do happen, you don't know your partner is gonna be the one to make them. Take the precautions you can absolutely, but dont stress too much about something that will probably never happen