Digital Police Scanners
In days gone by, the general public had the ability to listen in to all the goings on of their local police departments and emergency services through a police scanner. I recall my grandfather getting a scanner for Christmas one year, but we couldn’t get it to work until we were able to get to Radio Shack the next day for crystals that we’d have to install so he could hear the various frequencies in his area. He was in a great place living on Cape Cod because he was able to hear not only police, fire and ambulance traffic, but he could also pick up the Coast Guard traffic as well.
Those days are long gone now, however. Police scanners eventually went to a programmable system so crystals were no longer needed. While most of the programmable scanners made back in the 90′s and early 2000′s still work, the move to digital police scanners has shut out many folks that have the older models.
Following 9/11, the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials announced APCO Project 25, an attempt to reserve a spectrum on digital frequencies for law enforcement in addition to emergency use. They’re purposely chosen to be available to first responders in emergencies for sending sensitive details. But the digital radio scanner makes them as readily available for the listening public as the outdated scanners made the high frequency broadcasts. A digital radio scanner can be found for purchase on the Internet or at several local electronics stores.
Not all departments have gone digital yet, but I suspect most will eventually. If your police and emergency services departments haven’t encrypted their communications yet, or you have a digital police scanner to listen in, listening to the police scanner can provide you with plenty of entertainment. You’ll hear it all – from traffic stops to calls for emergency services at car accidents and medical issues.
While many turn their police scanners on at various times, I leave my digital police scanners on 24 hours a day. I’ve got 4 – 2 desktop units from earlier times, and two up to date models – a hand held and a desk top. Both are capable of receiving up to 400 frequencies, but I’ve only got 25 or so of my local agencies programed into them.
I enjoy being able to listen in and know what’s going on in my community and have ever since the days of my grandfather getting his scanner. It really gets interesting when there are multiple events going on at the same time, which happens several times a week. I also enjoy knowing that if my wife or kids are late getting home that they haven’t been in an accident.
Digital police scanners aren’t just for the folks sitting at home wanting to know what’s going on. Newspaper, radio and TV reports often listen in so they are on top of major crimes or motor vehicle accidents, allowing them to get to the scene quickly.
Police and emergency communications have a language all their own. To get the most out of your listening, you’ll need to learn the 10-codes used by the departments in your area. Unfortunately, many states use different 10-codes, so getting a generic listing won’t do you much good. If you live in Nevada, for example, I’d recommend doing a Google search for Nevada police 10 codes. You may find – as in my state – that 10-4 has a completely different meaning that what you’ve heard on TV shows.
Buying a digital police scanner can be expensive, but there are some great deals available online in addition to your local electronics store.