[lom888]

FTA, quotes from council members:

Encrypting police radios “is a crime in itself,” Councilmember Robert Holden testified on Monday.

“There should never be a blackout of the press,” Councilmember Vickie Paladino added.

Radio encryption technology is more than 20 years old. In the UK this technology has been in place since 2000. Criminals monitor open frequencies and use this information in their crimes. I fail to understand the logic of why one would have a police department and then hinder the tools that they use to effectively enforce the law. It's not like they can't just use a cell phone anyway and not have their comms heard by the public.

[woodruffw]

The UK is somewhat unique in terms of the level of public trust it places in its police[1]. It's probably an error to extend that level of trust to American policing, where the public's consent is not generally a significant concern.

[1]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peelian_principles

[Ekaros]

I could get onboard with legislation mandating that recordings of such communication should be made available to public in 3 months or something reasonable.

But I see nothing wrong in encrypting live communication.