The cameras are motion-activated and solar-powered, and the system’s cloud-based software allows law enforcement to search through recorded pictures by vehicle make, color, type, license plate, state, missing/covered plate, and unique vehicle details such as roof racks or bumper stickers.
“It’s an investigative tool,” Police Chief Jeff Fiorita said. “Most of our crimes are committed by someone driving a vehicle of some kind.”
Fiorita said in a presentation to city council that the images can only be accessed in a criminal justice inquiry, and the images are deleted in 30 days unless they are pulled as part of an ongoing investigation.
“Being CALEA-accredited, everything we do, we have to have a trail,” Fiorita said, referring to the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies. “We can go back and figure out who is doing what with that information. Any plate they run, any driver’s license they run, we know who it is.”
The company Flock Safety has drawn criticism from the American Civil Liberties Union for pooling information collected from the readers, including license plate number, location, and the date of scan, into data-sharing systems across the country.
Beavercreek police don’t know exactly where the cameras will go yet, but they likely will be placed in and around Beavercreek’s business hubs. The cameras require certain road conditions and traffic flow to be useful and would not be as effective on major highways or residential roads. Police said the cameras would only be used for serious incidents, and are not intended for routine traffic violations.
“Unless it’s a serious incident like a hit-and-run crash, it’s not for normal traffic enforcement,” Fiorita said.
Centerville, Vandalia, West Carrollton and Kettering are all communities that already use license plate readers or are considering them. Greene County also has 14 cameras already in use.
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