TUKWILA, Wash. — A high-tech tool is now helping police departments across the state.
The use of automated license plate readers (ALPR) is spreading fast, but so is the controversy.
In Tukwila, the city put a notice out about six months ago, letting people know they’d be using solar-powered cameras that are motion activated by vehicles. Police say it helps them investigate crimes, but critics say the cameras go too far.
Across Washington, more cities are installing license plate reader cameras.
"We work with about 30 law enforcement agencies in the state of Washington,” said Holly Beilin, a Flock Safety spokesperson.
Last year, the Tukwila Police Department told city leaders that crime was up and staffing was down.
"Our stats in Tukwila, they are pretty staggering. Burglaries are up 24% in 2020 from 2019,” said Deputy Chief Eric Lund during a meeting in April of 2022. "One of the things we have come up with as a possible solution is ALPRs."
The city advertised the ALPRs in January, posting a picture of the new tech tool on the police department’s Twitter page.
“They take a still image of the back of a vehicle, every vehicle that passes by and they really hone in on the license plate,” said Beilin.
Software on the camera compares the license plate to different crime databases.
"Just in Tukwila, there were three different stolen vehicle recoveries in just a few days, and they actually got the real-time alerts, were able to go after these vehicles, and apprehend the suspect safety,” Beilin said.
"ACLU generally has been concerned about automated license plate readers,” said Jennifer Lee, the technology policy program director at ACLU of Washington. "The line between private and public surveillance is becoming increasingly blurred."
"This technology can be used to target drivers who visit sensitive places including centers of religious worship, protests, union halls, immigration clinics, health centers,” Lee added.
Flock Safety says for privacy protection all images are fully encrypted, and after a month are automatically deleted.
"We understand the pushback. That is why we have that 30-day retention feature because we simply don't believe that these images need to be kept longer than 30 days. That is enough time for law enforcement to hopefully start to investigate a crime,” said Beilin.
If the camera catches a license plate that is on a crime database, law enforcement is alerted immediately.
The ACLU of Washington says they are currently working to make sure there are clear guidelines for how government agencies use the technology.