Mineral County Sheriff's Office
Mineral, West Virginia
How we verified this
As of August 2026 RadioReference lists "1607 | Mineral Co Law | Law - Dispatch" and "1617 | Mineral Co LE CW | Law - Countywide" on the WV SIRN in the clear, and marks only "1619 | Mineral Co SO Pv | Sheriff - Private" as "D Enc".
Encryption Details
What This Means
Some of this agency's traffic is encrypted and some is not. What you can hear depends on the channel and on what the department is doing at the time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Mineral County Sheriff's Office radio encrypted?
Yes. Mineral County Sheriff's Office uses P25 AES-256 encryption. Some of this agency's traffic is encrypted and some is not. What you can hear depends on the channel and on what the department is doing at the time.
Can I listen to Mineral County Sheriff's Office on a police scanner?
Partially. Mineral County Sheriff's Office encrypts some of its talkgroups while leaving others open, so some channels may still be accessible. Check RadioReference for specific talkgroup status.
Why did Mineral County Sheriff's Office encrypt their radio?
The standard justification nationwide is officer safety and operational security, regardless of whether a documented local incident ever required it. The tradeoff that follows is consistent too: public oversight drops, and reporters lose the ability to track sheriff's office response as it happens.
Can Mineral County reverse the encryption decision?
Yes — nothing about the underlying radio technology forces this. It's a decision Mineral 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 Mineral County Sheriff's Office encryption?
File a FOIA request for Mineral County Sheriff's Office's radio recordings and encryption-decision paperwork, then show up to speak at a council or commission meeting. Find other residents or journalists in Mineral County who want the same access — state legislation requiring public radio access is the longer-term fix, but organized local pressure is what usually moves the needle first.