As of noon today both the Clay County and Cherokee County, North Carolina, Sheriff Departments are using now NXDN encryption on their primary dispatch repeaters.
In Clay County only the mobile units are encrypted, but the dispatcher remains in the clear.
In Cherokee over the last two hours on both their 158.970 MHz dispatch repeater and their 159.105 MHz tactical repeater all day yesterday appear to be encrypted. Until a few minutes ago, nothing was heard in the clear on the Cherokee dispatch repeater. They have again flipped the switch back to analog. Given that they appear to be testing the system using full encryption, one can only assume that will be the state of things when the go operational.
This reminds me of New Orleans when they implemented an unmonitorable EDCAS system that could NOT interface with anyone else. That all blew up in their face when Hurricane Katrina hit and they couldn't communicate with outside agencies.
I asked then of the NOPD and I will ask now directly to both SO departments, "what do you folks have to hide in order that you need encryption on you dispatch stream?"
I can understand a sensitive situation involving a SWAT or detectives surveillance ops, but your main dispatch stream? Do you realize how many eyes and ears you have cut out by shutting down the information stream to the public you serve?
Bottom line, if you own a scanner on Clay and Cherokee Co NC and want to monitor the sheriff departments, you will have to find another activity to pass the time away. I guess Honey Boo Boo is only a channel change away!
BTW as I post this the Cherokee Co SO dispatch stream is encrypted again.
