zachgallop
Member
Recently I have been contacting TWRA regarding to their switch to dispatch 2 specifically in Region 4. As well as Region 3. They are now using Dispatch 2 Encrypted for all Dispatch ops. There was a memo sent out by the major regarding the change. I did not get a response from the ask TWRA or the Law Enforcement Major regarding my emails.I would encourage others to email TWRA at the following Email Adresses: Brian.thompson@tn.gov (Major Thompson) and Ask.TWRA@tn.gov . Also to call Major Thompson at (731) 423-5731 . Petition might be comming soon or contacting the media since they have not addressed my concerns. Thank you for any help. This decision really confuses me. Maybe they just need a push like THP did.
Here is a copy of my email sent to Ask Twra:
I have emailed Major Thompson in the past with no response. I was told to email this email address.. Unsure if he is getting them or not. The first was on May 25th(typo in email) and the 2nd email was sent on the June 1st.But on the other hand he has emailed a person I know back. Here is my email to him, maybe somebody could answer these questions and address my concerns:
Major Thompson,
Unsure if you got my last email, on the 2th of May. I am emailing as to the TWRA switch to Dispatch 2 for main ops. I am a young citizen of the Loudon and Knox County community , that highly disagrees with this change.I respect the right for law enforcement like TWRA to encrypt the tactical channels channels. I believe that day to day channels such as Dispatch 1 sould stay open to preserve transparency. I respect encryption of certain tactical channels for the safety of officers. Personally I believe every agency should have access to encryption but not for main ops.I believe TWRA should consider a balance between transparency and officer safety. I am all for officer safety but I am a big proponent of transparency as well.There is little evidence that encryption help enhance officer safety that much. I am a big time hobbyist into scanner/radio communications since I was 7 years old and I enjoy hearing as well as seeing what the people in public safety do has inspired me to pursue a career in law enforcement after high school. I am very interested in TWRA specifically because I really enjoy the outdoors and I am a big time sportsman. Me,radio hobbyist, the media, and many scanner monitors across the state would like to see this level of transparency continued by switching back to Dispatch 1 in unencrypted mode.
For years I have been monitoring TWRA, along with other agencies in my area. During the summertime months TWRA is one of the agencies I monitor the most. Due to the big interest I have in specifically your boating patrols and presuing a career at TWRA . I live on Melton Hill lake in Region 4 very close to Region 3. It is very informative to listen to your talkgroups. Honestly I do not see much of a reason for TWRA to be encrypted the majority of the time. There is not any Natural resource type agency I have seen across the country that uses encryption full time. I really liked your oldest setup where dispatch 1 had selectable encryption it worked real well. Region 4 never really has been a big user of encryption but on the other hand Region 3 has. I was wondering the following: If this is a statewide thing now and Is there a specific incident that caused this?
Now last year I realized Region 3 started using dispatch 2 full time encrypted then Before that selectable encryption on dispatch 1 heavily. When I started noticing Region 4 using encryption I was really stocked out of all the agencies in Tennessee is that TWRA would resort to this. Not even THP uses encryption full time,they primary use their main dispatch 1 unencrypted. The rest is encrypted of their talkgroup such as Dispatch. Even the National Park Service and TVA rarely use encryption.
I do realize there is some the that use the information they hear over your channels irresponsibly. But why let the minority (the bad) ruin it for the majority (for the good).We ask TWRA that switch back to using Dispatch 1 unencrypted. As well as continuing using certain tactical channels that are encrypted for the safety of officers and protecting sensitive information. I am sure me and many others would be more than happy to see the change back to dispatch 1. Will you and your agency take this into consideration? Also are the VHF frequencies still used? Thank you for all your agency does to keep our state and our resources safe!
Thank you,
Zachary Gallop
Senior
Track/XC
L&N STEM Academy
Thank you for any help!
Here is a copy of my email sent to Ask Twra:
I have emailed Major Thompson in the past with no response. I was told to email this email address.. Unsure if he is getting them or not. The first was on May 25th(typo in email) and the 2nd email was sent on the June 1st.But on the other hand he has emailed a person I know back. Here is my email to him, maybe somebody could answer these questions and address my concerns:
Major Thompson,
Unsure if you got my last email, on the 2th of May. I am emailing as to the TWRA switch to Dispatch 2 for main ops. I am a young citizen of the Loudon and Knox County community , that highly disagrees with this change.I respect the right for law enforcement like TWRA to encrypt the tactical channels channels. I believe that day to day channels such as Dispatch 1 sould stay open to preserve transparency. I respect encryption of certain tactical channels for the safety of officers. Personally I believe every agency should have access to encryption but not for main ops.I believe TWRA should consider a balance between transparency and officer safety. I am all for officer safety but I am a big proponent of transparency as well.There is little evidence that encryption help enhance officer safety that much. I am a big time hobbyist into scanner/radio communications since I was 7 years old and I enjoy hearing as well as seeing what the people in public safety do has inspired me to pursue a career in law enforcement after high school. I am very interested in TWRA specifically because I really enjoy the outdoors and I am a big time sportsman. Me,radio hobbyist, the media, and many scanner monitors across the state would like to see this level of transparency continued by switching back to Dispatch 1 in unencrypted mode.
For years I have been monitoring TWRA, along with other agencies in my area. During the summertime months TWRA is one of the agencies I monitor the most. Due to the big interest I have in specifically your boating patrols and presuing a career at TWRA . I live on Melton Hill lake in Region 4 very close to Region 3. It is very informative to listen to your talkgroups. Honestly I do not see much of a reason for TWRA to be encrypted the majority of the time. There is not any Natural resource type agency I have seen across the country that uses encryption full time. I really liked your oldest setup where dispatch 1 had selectable encryption it worked real well. Region 4 never really has been a big user of encryption but on the other hand Region 3 has. I was wondering the following: If this is a statewide thing now and Is there a specific incident that caused this?
Now last year I realized Region 3 started using dispatch 2 full time encrypted then Before that selectable encryption on dispatch 1 heavily. When I started noticing Region 4 using encryption I was really stocked out of all the agencies in Tennessee is that TWRA would resort to this. Not even THP uses encryption full time,they primary use their main dispatch 1 unencrypted. The rest is encrypted of their talkgroup such as Dispatch. Even the National Park Service and TVA rarely use encryption.
I do realize there is some the that use the information they hear over your channels irresponsibly. But why let the minority (the bad) ruin it for the majority (for the good).We ask TWRA that switch back to using Dispatch 1 unencrypted. As well as continuing using certain tactical channels that are encrypted for the safety of officers and protecting sensitive information. I am sure me and many others would be more than happy to see the change back to dispatch 1. Will you and your agency take this into consideration? Also are the VHF frequencies still used? Thank you for all your agency does to keep our state and our resources safe!
Thank you,
Zachary Gallop
Senior
Track/XC
L&N STEM Academy
Thank you for any help!