[Scan-DC] Police in Richmond area to encrypt radio channels

[Alan Henney]

Associated Press State & Local

STATE AND REGIONAL

Police in Richmond area to encrypt radio channels

By DENISE LAVOIE, Associated Press

June 18, 2018 Monday 10:03 PM GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Police in Richmond and two neighboring counties are
planning to encrypt their police radio channels, ending public access to
their communications.

Police chiefs in the city of Richmond, and Chesterfield and Henrico
counties said Monday that their radio frequencies will be encrypted on July
2. After that, only public safety personnel will be able to monitor radio
transmissions.

In an email to news outlets, the chiefs said the move is aimed at "ensuring
that the dissemination of in-progress tactics and activities during
high-risk events is limited to those whose mission is to resolve events
swiftly and with minimal risk to those involved."

The chiefs also said they want to ensure that the communication of
sensitive personal information does not violate legal rights or privacy.

The chiefs acknowledged that the encryption could affect news outlets,
which routinely use police scanners to track criminal activity. They said
they've asked their staffs to come up with alternative ways of keeping news
outlets informed about "active, real-time information."

Police in Virginia Beach - the state's largest city - announced in May that
they also plan to encrypt their radio channels. They said the move is aimed
at preventing criminals from listening to police communications.

Encrypting police radio transmissions is not a new trend, but one that
could affect the relationship between police and the news media, said Megan
Rhyne, executive director of the Virginia Coalition for Open Government.

"There's not a statutory or constitutional right to listen to a scanner ...
but there has been this historical and practical relationship between the
police and press to be able to have access to this so that the information
can be gotten out to the public," Rhyne said.

Jay Webb, news director of WHSV-TV in Harrisonburg, said he is opposed to
encryption, but realizes police have their reasons for doing it.

"My biggest fear is that we'll just flat-out miss things and will have to
rely more and more on our viewers to tell us what they're seeing because we
can't hear it on our scanners," Webb said in an email.