A new Santa Barbara County Grand Jury report says there are major problems with the radio system used by the County Sheriff’s Department, ones which could create public safety issues.
The report says there are a number of dead spots in both the North and South County, and a special trouble area is the Cuyama Valley.
Grand Jury members interviewed a number of deputies who recounted problems with poor, or no reception while on the job. The Sheriff’s Department is in the process of installing repeaters to fill in some of the dead spots. The Grand Jury is recommending that the county move to a new set of frequencies that are being adopted nationally, and are already in use by Santa Maria Police.
The new digital systems have many more capabilities, especially when it comes to interacting with other public safety agencies.
However, replacing the existing system with a new network would be extremely expensive.
