Wrong. It's a private system intended for use only by the agency that built it.
A public system is one built for use by the general public. Cellphones are part of a public system.
"its a private radio system, used by a public agency paid for by the public."
There. I fixed it for you. =)
Just to clarify, this system operates under 47CFR Part 90 of the FCC rules and regulations. Part 90 is known as "Private Land Mobile Radio Services"
Here's a useful link to help you understand where I'm coming from:
FCC: Wireless Services: Private Land Mobile Radio Services: Private Land Mobile
Wrong again. There is no "right to monitor". Where on earth did you get that? Could you show us where in the Constitution or Bill of Rights it says we have a "right to monitor"? You can't, because there is no such right.
There are mechanisms in place to hold law enforcement agencies accountable to the public, and none of them require public access to their radio communications. The fact is, if anything seriously nefarious is taking place in a department, chances are, the communications related to this nefarious action is taking place via cellphone which... wait for it... CAN'T BE MONITORED.
If your concerned about what the police are doing, take your concerns to the Grand Jury. They are tasked with providing public oversight over government agencies like law enforcement, etc. There are requirements for logging radio and telephone traffic, and those logs are discoverable evidence. If there was to be some sort of episode of police abuse, logs of radio traffic can be subpoenaed as evidence.
The notion of scanner hobbyists being the last bastion of political freedom and saviors against police brutality in the U.S. is patently absurd.
My eyes ARE open. After 35 some odd years in public safety communications, I have a very good idea as to the reasons behind the move toward encryption. It's very simple, and none of them have anything to do with hiding accountability or a dislike of scanner listeners.
Here they are:
1. There is a perception among LE agencies that they are facing more serious criminal threats than they have in the past: terrorism, sophisticated street gangs, and drug cartels.
2. The technology is becoming easier and more cost effective to implement.
3. Any tool that can be acquired to help mitigate item #1 above will be considered for use.