steve2: although I should imagine if the elders dared to secretly video our friend's "trial", we'd be declaring them to be very deceptive and dishonest. Funny how we don't accuse our friend of that. Hmmmmmm.
It is not fair to put the elders and the one accused on the same playing field when they are not.
The relationship is one that is hugely power imbalanced, with the elders having all the power. If the elders taped the "trial" they would be reinforcing that power imbalance in their own favor. When the accused tapes the "trial", it is an attempt to balance out that power relationship and reclaim his personal power in an unfair situation. Even if you consider that the taped conversation is the accused person's "witness", the power dynamics still favor the elders.
You cannot compare the two positions fairly when the positions are unfairly balanced to begin with.