[WIham] MJS 3/15/10: Digital police radios black out public access
djmullen tds.net
djmullen at tds.net
Sat Mar 27 23:15:27 EDT 2010
Is the Milwaukee radio system encrypted or just digitized? If it's not
actually encrypted, decoders will probably be out soon.
On Wed, Mar 17, 2010 at 6:48 AM, <paul7288 at centurytel.net> wrote:
> Hi Rick,
>
> I read the info and ...what is the point/reason for this email?
>
> Paul,WG0G
>
> Quoting Rick Kisséll <rick at kissell.org>:
> > Digital police radios black out public access
> >
> > by Ryan Haggerty of the
> > Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
> > 3/15/10
> >
> > Alex Gregory's violent rampage
> > last month lasted nearly eight hours, beginning when he fired shots
> > about 4 p.m. outside a day care center on Milwaukee's north side and
> > ending when he shot himself in the head as police tried to arrest him.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Before he killed
> > himself, Gregory kidnapped his girlfriend and their two children and
> > drove to various locations on the north side. He shot at his girlfriend
> > when she escaped, and he later shot her sister, leaving the woman in
> > critical condition.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Even though
> > police were searching for Gregory for much of the night, news of the
> > outburst wasn't reported by local media until about 11 a.m. the next
> > day, after a police spokesman briefed reporters about the incident.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > The delay in
> > coverage was due in large part to the fact that the Milwaukee Police
> > Department's new digital radio system, which has cost more than
> > $17 million and has been plagued with
> > problems, cannot be monitored by radio scanners.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Local media
> > outlets, including the Journal Sentinel, used scanners for years to
> > learn about breaking news in Milwaukee such as shootings, stabbings and
> > serious traffic crashes. Some residents also used scanners to keep tabs
> > on police activities.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > The department's
> > digital radio system, known as OpenSky, became fully operational in
> > early February, replacing the department's analog system and leaving
> > scanner listeners in the dark. Milwaukee police have no plans to make
> > their broadcasts available to the public again, primarily because of
> > concerns about officer safety, department spokeswoman Anne E. Schwartz
> > said.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > "It's about
> > public access to hear where officers are located and where officers are
> > going to respond to calls," Schwartz said. "I can't tell you how many
> > times we've gone in gang houses or drug houses and found scanners. In
> > post-9/11 law enforcement, we have had to take a hard look at the access
> > that we are allowing the public to our information."
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > The public also
> > will not be able to pick up Milwaukee Fire Department broadcasts when
> > the department completes its switch to OpenSky, a department spokeswoman
> > said.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > The elimination
> > of the public's ability to monitor police broadcasts comes as media
> > outlets highlight the state's open records laws during Sunshine Week,
> > a national
> > effort by
> > the American Society of News Editors and others to promote the public's
> > right to know.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Lori Waldon, news
> > director at WISN-TV (Channel 12), said prohibiting residents and the
> > media from listening to police broadcasts can affect the public's
> > safety.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > "I understand
> > about police safety, but there's also public safety, too," Waldon said.
> > "If (the police) are in an area where it's an active scene and people
> > have guns, we are a way of getting the information out really fast.
> > Police are saying, 'Stay in your house,' or police are saying, 'Avoid
> > these streets.' If we aren't there and we don't know, then how are they
> > getting the information out fast?" Waldon said her station confirms
> > information gathered from police broadcasts before reporting it and
> > always takes police safety into account when covering breaking news.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > "If the police
> > tell us, 'Don't fly the helicopter,' or 'Don't say where we are,' we
> > don't," Waldon said. "We've always tried to be safe."
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Residents who
> > enjoy listening to scanners also are upset by the silence, said John
> > Schneider, a Milwaukee resident who has four scanners on inside his home
> > around the clock.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > "I want to find
> > out what's going on in the neighborhood, if someone just killed someone
> > or robbed a bank," Schneider said. "You can keep an eye out for people
> > or lock your doors. If I see a cop down the block with his gun out, I
> > want to know if I'm safe."
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Milwaukee police
> > began the process of switching to the digital system in 2003 in an
> > effort to comply with modified federal regulations regarding radio
> > communications that take effect in 2013.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > The regulations
> > do not require law enforcement agencies to use a digital system, but
> > many agencies are switching from analog to digital as digital radio
> > technology develops, said Robert Kenny, speaking for the Federal
> > Communications Commission.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Law enforcement
> > agencies can choose whether their broadcasts are available for the
> > public to monitor, Kenny said.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Milwaukee police
> > maintain a Web
> > site that lists the department's recent calls for service. The site
> > operates on a delay.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > Michael Crivello,
> > president of the Milwaukee Police Association, said the union is more
> > concerned about the functionality and safety of the new radios than
> > preventing the public from listening to officers' broadcasts.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > "There are
> > situations where we would need to control the radio access as far as
> > different operations in the field," Crivello said. "But I don't know
> > that that was an issue in the past because we had secure channels to do
> > that on. The regular broadcasts, the dispatches that were put out
> > before, is there a reason why you should not be able to get that now? I
> > don't know what that reason would be."
> >
> > http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/87731882.html
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > ______________________________________________________________
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