Virginia lawmakers are considering regulating police use of automatic license plate readers

The Article was reprinted with permission from the Virginia Mercury.

State lawmakers are debating whether to regulate the use of automated license plate readers (ALPRs) by law enforcement agencies. At a meeting Thursday in Richmond, they heard voters’ views on the technology and reviewed studies from the Virginia State Crime Commission.

ALPRs are typically mounted cameras (but can also be dashboard cameras) that take a photo or video clip of a vehicle and its license plate, along with the location, date and time of capture. The technology is growing in popularity across the country in both the public and private sectors, from homeowners associations and businesses to law enforcement agencies.

In Thursday’s presentation, the commission’s deputy director, Colin Drabert, presented a study and feedback from unnamed “stakeholders.” Their responses, he said, reflected that there were numerous benefits as well as concerns about law enforcement’s use of the technology.

“Few rigorous studies have been conducted on the effectiveness of ALPR,” he said. “However, studies conducted have shown that ALPR is particularly effective in assisting law enforcement in locating stolen vehicles and investigating other crimes.”

He also noted concerns from stakeholders that placing cameras in minority communities “would have disparate impacts on residents of those communities.”

The Department of Criminal Justice Services is currently determining how many law enforcement agencies in Virginia are already using ALPR – information that will be available “in the near future,” Drabert said.

At least 18 states currently regulate the use of ALPRs, and 17 of them also regulate the length of time law enforcement agencies can retain data. For example, New Hampshire allows three minutes, while Alabama allows up to five years. Some conditions last between a few weeks and a few months.

Although law enforcement agencies can share data with other public and private entities that use ALPR, Drabert emphasized repeatedly that ALPR alone does not reveal people’s identities. He said law enforcement must access separate databases to determine who owns a vehicle tagged by the technology.

Drabert explained that law enforcement agencies using ALPR receive alerts about “hot list” features such as stolen vehicles or license plates, vehicles associated with people known to be potentially involved in criminal activity, and vehicles who are connected to missing people.

Charlottesville Police Chief Michael Kochis advocated for the use of ALPRs in a public statement, saying some community members in his community had asked for them.

He said that “people whose houses were being shot up every week” kept asking, “When are we going to get it?”

In September, the Charlottesville City Council approved the installation of Flock Safety Cameras – a leading ALPR company in America – after a series of community meetings that elicited mixed feedback from residents.

But common concerns that emerged in Virginia and across the country as ALPR’s use grew were about protecting privacy and preventing unreasonable searches and seizures by governments.

Norfolk residents recently filed a federal lawsuit against the use of flock cameras, claiming they violate people’s Fourth Amendment rights, which protect against unreasonable searches and seizures.

Drabert mentioned cases in which the use of ALPR resulted in flawed searches, such as when a mother and her children were held at gunpoint in Colorado after being falsely suspected of being in a stolen car.

Ruby Cherian, an attorney with the Legal Aid Justice Center, urged lawmakers to consider “guardrails” for law enforcement’s use of the technology.

“Officers should be required to obtain a search warrant for database searches to protect privacy and prevent misuse and misuse,” she said.

Del. Wren Williams, R-Patrick, asked whether a 30-day limit on data retention would be appropriate. Cherian agreed, but said she would like to see a shorter cutoff.

The Crime Commission will meet again on Dec. 16, when Del. Charniele Herring, D-Alexandria, said some decisions can be made about how to proceed with possible regulations. After Thursday’s meeting, Herring said she wanted to read through the documents from the presentation and analyze other information and cases related to ALPR use.

“I think something needs to be done,” she said.