PURPOSE:

The purpose of this policy is to establish guidelines and requirements for the use of the Automatic License  Plate Recognition (LPR) devices and access to the LPR data.  

POLICY:

LPR devices and information contained within the LPR databases will be utilized for law enforcement  purposes only.  

PROCEDURES:

Use (10.37.1)

A. Personnel will ensure they are logged into the LPR system their assigned username.

B. An officer may not detain an individual based on an alert from the LPR system unless the Officer has  reasonable suspicion that such person is involved in criminal activity. Each incident should be weighed  according to the totality of the circumstances presented therein. The following are general guidelines only,  but should assist an officer in determining when reasonable suspicion exists concerning various types of  LPR alerts.

1. The officer shall visually verify that the scanned plate matches the alert information  regarding plate letters, numbers, and the issuing state.

2. The officer should attempt to visually verify that the vehicle description and any other  descriptors provided are consistent between the alert and the vehicle/person in question.

3. Once the state and all characters of the tag have been verified as accurate, the following  information should be utilized by an officer in determining whether or not reasonable  suspicion exists:

a. Expired Tags, Insurance and Other License Plate Suspensions – Officers  should verify the status of the tag on GCIC to establish reasonable suspicion.

b. Stolen Vehicles and Stolen License Plates –An alert alone is generally sufficient  to establish reasonable suspicion.

c. Wanted Person – A wanted person alert may be utilized as reasonable suspicion  unless the officer has information that the wanted subject is not inside the vehicle.  

d. BOLO Only – This alert is information only for officers, and reasonable  suspicion may or may not exist based on the alert alone. The narrative of the alert  

will assist officers in determining the level of reasonable suspicion. Independent  

reasonable suspicion may or may not be required in order to detain.

e. CPIC Data – These alerts contain information from the Canadian Police  Information Centre. These alerts vary widely and should be read to determine the  

existence of reasonable suspicion.

f. Officer Safety, Suspected Gang Member, Sexual Offender, Past Offender,  Associate Only, and Information Only – These alerts are information only for  officers. Reasonable suspicion should be obtained in order to detain.

C. In order to enter a tag into the Local Hotlist (database containing alerts), an officer should have reasonable suspicion to believe the car is legitimately associated with  the information being conveyed to officers, criminal activity, or the  

person sought (owner, regular driver, regular passenger, driver or passenger  involved in previous criminal activity in said vehicle, etc.).

1. Once the officer has sufficient evidence based on the above, an entry into  the local hotlist may be made only after being approved by an Investigative  Unit Supervisor. If a tag has been, or will be, entered into GCIC/NCIC or  the Department of Revenue hotlist, it should generally not be entered into  the Local Hotlist unless there are extenuating circumstances dictating faster  entry.  

2. Only complete tag numbers will be entered into the system. Requests to  enter partial tags will be rejected.

3. Employees entering tag numbers into the local hotlist shall set expirations  for no longer than 30 days from date of entry. Officers requesting entry  should be cognizant that alerts expire 30 days after entry. Should the officer  require renewal of the entry, such renewal may be made with the approval  of and by an Investigative Unit Supervisor.

4. Once the entering officer is made aware that the alert is no longer valid, he  should immediately request the tag to be removed from the system.  Removal may be made through an Investigative Unit Supervisor.

DATA SECURITY AND ACCESS (10.37.2)

LPR devices/databases will be utilized/accessed for law enforcement purposes only.

A. Personnel who are granted access to LPR devices and/or databases will be issued a username and  password specific to each individual.

B. When conducting investigative queries into an LPR database, a requestor, case number (if  available), and reason shall be entered associated with the search. Queries regarding administrative  or auditing purposes will be excluded from the requirement to provide a case number.  

C. Personnel will not release any specific information obtained by the LPR devices that would be  considered a privacy issue, or create the appearance of one, to non-law enforcement personnel unless  required by law. This shall not preclude personnel from releasing general information as to the  effectiveness of the LPR program and other such communication.

TRAINING (10.37.3)

Prior to using the LPR system, officers will complete the Department approved training and demonstrate proficiency based on the manufacturer’s recommendations.  

DATA STORAGE, RETENTION, AND SHARING (10.37.4)

A. The database retention period for all data collected will be no more than 2 years or as required by  state or federal law.  

B. Sharing of data with other Law Enforcement agencies will be at the discretion of the CID  Commander or his designee.