What are police talking about on their encrypted radios? The public may soon find out [update] – LancasterOnline

Lancaster County residents could soon have access to police communications, which have been restricted for the past two and a half years.

In response to the George Floyd protests, County Commissioner Craig Lehman on Tuesday proposed reversing a 2017 decision to restrict public access to the system, which he voted against.

The matter could go to a vote in early August.

At the time, Commissioner Josh Parsons and former Commissioner Dennis Stuckey sided with the argument from the Lancaster County Chiefs of Police Association that the change was needed to protect police safety.

Parsons, now questioning the credibility of the association, said he is open to changing his vote, possibly tipping the scales in favor of opening the system for public listening.

"(When I voted to encrypt), it was based largely on the chiefs' credibility and on the assumption that they were acting in good faith," he said. "That trust has been broken."

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In an hourlong discussion Tuesday, the board of commissioners, the county's attorney, various Lancaster County police chiefs and District Attorney Heather Adams discussed the encryption.

Lehman said he introduced the idea to allow access two weeks ago in response to protests and because encryption of the system gave police a false sense of security while simultaneously having the possibility of breeding mistrust among the public with a perception of law enforcement communications happening in secret.

"Im a firm believer that transparency is foundational to any reform, and that includes police reform," Lehman said.

Parsons said the 2017 decision to encrypt was a "close call" between his desire for transparency and desire to protect police safety.

In 2017, the argument from the chiefs of police association was that encryption wouldprotect police from ambushes and secure personal information about crime victims and witnesses.

Parsons now says the credibility of the association has been "largelydestroyed." He referenced a struggle between the commissioners office and former District Attorney Craig Stedman to get access to drug forfeiture financial records following LNP | LancasterOnline's reporting on a vehicle leased by Stedman.

"We took a lot of criticism from many corners for doing so, includingthe chiefs of police association," he said. "They should have been supporting our fight for ethical behavior, not opposing it.

The spat between the association and the commissioners continued for severalmonths, with various letters being traded accusing Parsons of misusinghis positionand claims that the association had been "used" by Stedman.

East Earl Police Chief Kevin McCarthy, president of the police association, apologizedto Parsons on behalf of the association for offending him and later said he was supporting the former District Attorneys line of argument based on blind faith he had for Stedman, as he does for Adams now.

I agree with (Commissioner Lehmans) argument, McCarthy said. If thats the decision of the board, that (decryption) will create more transparency, Ill agree with you.

Adams said she thought the 2017 decision was the correct one, citing a court rule that restricts some confidential information as well as restrictions on confidential information in the states open-records law.

Lancaster County solicitor Chris Hausner chimed in to say that the county had tried making an argument about the court rule in a records case with LNP | LancasterOnline regarding autopsy records, and the argument was rejected by the court. Mike Weaver, who heads Lancaster County-Wide Communications, also mentioned that laws from the AIDS crisis established that citizens give up their right to privacy when they call 911.

Weaver also said that decryption would cost roughly $100,000, which Lehman said he would happily spend.

Toward the end of the meeting, Lehman proposed a deal to allow media organizations access to the encrypted system as a work-around. McCarthy said he was not necessarily opposed to the idea but that there are questions about defining a media organization and live broadcasts would be reported with accuracy when situations change on the ground.

We believe the decision to encrypt those communications, approved by the county board of commissioners without evidence that a single investigation had been hindered, dealt a blow to transparency, accountability and trust in our government agencies at a time when citizens need them most, LNP | LancasterOnline executive editor Tom Murse said. We believe all citizens should have access to those dispatches, and support any step toward providing Lancaster County taxpayers with a better understanding of how the very law-enforcement entities they fund operate."

Lehman asked McCarthy to bring a proposal for full decryption to the associations meeting next month, so that the commissioners can vote on the matter at the first meeting in August.

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What are police talking about on their encrypted radios? The public may soon find out [update] - LancasterOnline