Post by ArkCowboy on Dec 26, 2008 19:42:08 GMT -7
i am not happy about this!! NRA types always cry about "if they do such and such then the next thing you know..." well that is my concern here, and frankly i feel my concerns are far more grounded in reality due to the rampant tramplings of civil liberties!!
CPD to get automatic license plate reader
By JOE LAMB
LOG CABIN STAFF WRITER
The Conway City Council approved the $29,205 purchase of one Federal Signal Corporation automatic license plate reader to be fitted to a Conway Police Department vehicle.
The system is contains a pair of forward- and rearward-facing cameras that stream video images to a computer running software designed to identify the shape of a license plate, "read" the letters and numbers on it, and cross-reference the license plate information with Arkansas Crime Information Center (ACIC) databases and whatever other databases or information CPD sees fit to load into the system.
Conway Chief of Police A. J. Gary told the council that the system also has the capacity to log license plates as it is driven through an area. If the system is deployed to an area immediately after or before a criminal event, he said, CPD can use this information to get a good idea of what vehicles were in the area.
The officer operating the equipment could also be alerted to a passing vehicle registered to someone with an active warrant. An audible alert would sound, Gary said, and information pertaining to the suspect and warrant would be brought up on the in-car computer.
Lt. Danny Moody of the Conway Police Department said that one Arkansas law enforcement agency spent its first few weeks with a similar automatic license plate reader "basically just driving around school parking lots and finding stolen cars."
Though the vote was unanimously in favor of purchasing the system, aldermen David Grimes and Mark Vaught expressed concerns that the system seemed a bit "big brother."
Vaught said that he would not care to see the system used to spot out-of-date registration stickers or drivers with unpaid parking tickets, but recognized that it had potential in helping solve serious crimes.
Alderman Andy Hawkins, who saw a demonstration of the system recently, said simply "it's really, really cool; a good tool for police."
CPD to get automatic license plate reader
By JOE LAMB
LOG CABIN STAFF WRITER
The Conway City Council approved the $29,205 purchase of one Federal Signal Corporation automatic license plate reader to be fitted to a Conway Police Department vehicle.
The system is contains a pair of forward- and rearward-facing cameras that stream video images to a computer running software designed to identify the shape of a license plate, "read" the letters and numbers on it, and cross-reference the license plate information with Arkansas Crime Information Center (ACIC) databases and whatever other databases or information CPD sees fit to load into the system.
Conway Chief of Police A. J. Gary told the council that the system also has the capacity to log license plates as it is driven through an area. If the system is deployed to an area immediately after or before a criminal event, he said, CPD can use this information to get a good idea of what vehicles were in the area.
The officer operating the equipment could also be alerted to a passing vehicle registered to someone with an active warrant. An audible alert would sound, Gary said, and information pertaining to the suspect and warrant would be brought up on the in-car computer.
Lt. Danny Moody of the Conway Police Department said that one Arkansas law enforcement agency spent its first few weeks with a similar automatic license plate reader "basically just driving around school parking lots and finding stolen cars."
Though the vote was unanimously in favor of purchasing the system, aldermen David Grimes and Mark Vaught expressed concerns that the system seemed a bit "big brother."
Vaught said that he would not care to see the system used to spot out-of-date registration stickers or drivers with unpaid parking tickets, but recognized that it had potential in helping solve serious crimes.
Alderman Andy Hawkins, who saw a demonstration of the system recently, said simply "it's really, really cool; a good tool for police."