Lori Lightfoot is rethinking her prohibition on real-time police radio traffic. East County Gazette Investigates covered Chicago police radio encryption on Monday.
Over half of the city’s police districts have muted scanners by encrypting radio channels. encrypted next year.
Media law attorney Steve Mandell noted that encrypting signals reduces information, which affects public safety and government oversight.
Right to View Police actions Live
“Officer safety,” Lightfoot said Wednesday. “If it’s unencrypted and there’s access, there’s no way to govern criminals, who will likewise get access, listen in, and adjust their unlawful activities in response to the officers’ radio signals.” Continues.”
Lightfoot would only let police radio traffic go online with a 30-minute delay. Reporters found Monday that the city may edit broadcasts. Privacy.
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Dan Casey of the Chicago Office of Public Safety claimed the dispatcher may reduce it.
Encrypting to safeguard policemen, the city presented no examples of scanner viewers injuring officers.
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“Then what I found out was on a daily basis, you have persons in our area blowing whistles, air horns and doing other things to interrupt and disrupt the communications from the dispatchers to the police officers and so forth,” Lightfoot said.
“I think there were some unsuitable persons who were sometimes on the lines, but it didn’t effect any of the conversations with the officers who were in the field and in the different deployments,” Lightfoot stated in June 2020.
Police scanners serve more than the public and press combined.
Pastor Donovan Price helps crime victims.
“I see emergencies, gunshots down my street, so I pick up the scanner,” Price told WGN Investigates. Drop it.
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“I feel it’s vital that our folks be able to know what’s going on in real-time,” 29th Ward Ald. Chris Taliaferro said. Information about crimes is vital.
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“We’ve supplied other media businesses with a little delay in the broadcasts, and they’ve basically told us—I won’t say pound sand—their way or no way,” Lightfoot said.
Lightfoot’s office has ignored multiple requests to address concerns. San Francisco, Denver, and Louisville encrypt police frequencies.
Las Vegas provided authorised news organisations with live access. As city watchdogs, the Chicago media wants that.
Source: https://wgntv.com/