South Dakota Highway Patrol
Statwide, South Dakota
How we verified this
As of August 2026 nearly all South Dakota Highway Patrol talkgroups on the South Dakota State Radio System are unencrypted in RadioReference's listing — district office and car-to-car channels such as "249 | SDHP Rapid City | District 3 - Rapid City Car/Car | D" are plain D — with the encryption flag appearing on "237 | SDHP Sioux Falls | District 2 - Sioux Falls Car/Car", a car-to-car rather than a tactical channel.
Encryption Details
What This Means
Only the tactical side is closed. SWAT callouts and sensitive operations are encrypted; ordinary calls for service may still reach a scanner.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is South Dakota Highway Patrol radio encrypted?
Yes. South Dakota Highway Patrol uses P25 DES-OFB encryption. Only the tactical side is closed. SWAT callouts and sensitive operations are encrypted; ordinary calls for service may still reach a scanner.
Can I listen to South Dakota Highway Patrol on a police scanner?
Partially. South Dakota Highway Patrol encrypts its tactical channels, so some channels may still be accessible. Check RadioReference for specific talkgroup status.
Why did South Dakota Highway Patrol encrypt their radio?
The reasons offered are almost always the same two: officer safety and operational security. Whether either was tested against a real Statwide County incident is rarely part of the public record, whereas the consequences are easy to observe — no real-time accountability, and neighbouring agencies still in the clear left working around the gap.
Can Statwide County reverse the encryption decision?
Yes — nothing about the underlying radio technology forces this. It's a decision Statwide County officials made and can revisit, and other communities have pushed departments back toward open channels through sustained council pressure and coalition-building.
What can I do about South Dakota Highway Patrol encryption?
Three things carry weight, in this order: a public-records request for South Dakota Highway Patrol's encryption policy and radio recordings, a turn at the microphone during Statwide County budget discussions, and finding the other people locally already asking the same question. Individually these are easy to deflect; together they are not.