They’ve been in use in Charlotte for quite some time, but now the Triangle region has their own Automated License Plate Recognition (ALPR) cameras. These devices are designed to help police spot stolen cars and stolen license plates, but they aren’t without controversy.
The ACLU says that ALPR technology has serious privacy concerns, and they aren’t convinced that local police are doing enough to prevent abuses.
According to the Raleigh News & Observer, RPD has six of the devices, one in each police district. Recently, they are said to have helped cops identify two stolen cars and four stolen plates, something they say they wouldn’t have otherwise spotted.
The devices work by scanning every license plate that is passed. It does this using four different cameras mounted on the top of the patrol car. They can scan up to 3,000 plates in a single hour, checking them against a database of related crime.
If the ALPR technology hits on a reported stolen car or stolen plates, the officer is alerted with an alarm and a visual image of the plate and the vehicle carrying it. Then the officer can pursue the car.
The ACLU doesn’t have a problem with the technology, per se, but that departments are retaining the scanned information when the vast majority of those 3,000/hour scanned plates are not involved in a crime.
In Charlotte-Mecklenburg, cops are to purge the systems every 18 months. In Raleigh, policy dictates dumping the scans every 6 months.
“We question why police would need to retain that data for up to six months if the information isn’t being used in an investigation” said Mike Meno, a spokesman for the ACLU of North Carolina. He characterizes the possible police use of ALPR technology for predictive policing as “profiling.”
RPD says safeguards are in place to ensure the technology is only used appropriately and with respect to individual rights. Policy prevents police from using the devices to harass someone and also says they cannot deploy them unless there is a “legitimate law enforcement need or specific criminal investigation.”
Like many theft crimes in North Carolina, stealing a car or even stealing a license plate is a serious offense. If found guilty, you could be facing severe penalties. Fortunately, not even a license plate scanner means a sure-conviction.
About David Matson