Twenty automatic license plate reader cameras with the potential to scan millions of license plates each year will be installed around Newark as soon as next month, with the aim of deterring crime and solving more cases, according to police officials.
City Council member Mike Bucci is taking issue with the plans, saying he is concerned about the broad reach of the technology and the lack of clarity in the policies that govern use of the data.
In June, the Newark City Council voted 3-1 to authorize the police department to pay Flock Safety of Atlanta about $165,000 to lease 20 cameras that will be mounted around Newark, largely on roads in and out of the 14-square-mile city.
The cameras can scan up to 30,000 cars per day, according to Flock Safety. Newark has about 50,000 residents.
“Cameras have become a wonderful tool for helping to solve crime,” said Mayor Al Nagy.
However, Bucci questioned installing the cameras.
“In general, I’m just not a huge fan of bulk data collecting just for the sake of bulk data collecting, especially on people who haven’t done anything,” he said.
Newark police Capt. Jolie Macias told the council the cameras will help police solve crimes by quickly checking a vehicle’s license plate, make, model and color against a national database to find out if it has been reported stolen, is associated with a missing person or is wanted as evidence in an investigation.
Macias said that in the past three years in Newark, 70 percent of people arrested on suspicion of robbery, carjacking, burglary, stolen vehicles and catalytic converter thefts were not Newark residents.
“These cameras capturing data as they flee our city are critical,” Macias told the council.
Newark police do not have any metrics or statistics to determine whether the cameras are effective, though Macias said it is something the department would consider.
“Of course, I’m hopeful that they are going to reduce crime, but they are not only going to be put in place to reduce crime; they are put in place for other police investigations. They are for missing persons and things of that nature,” she said.
Bucci said part of why he is concerned is because of nearby Fremont’s experience with license plate readers.
“Fremont has had surveillance cameras for a long time, and the crime rate has gone up there over the last few years,” he said. “So when I’m told that these cameras are going to lower the crime rate, I’m a little more skeptical. That sounds good in theory, but in practice that’s not exactly accurate.”
The cameras could go up by late August or early September, Macias said. The police department is tentatively planning to bring the license plate reader policy back to the council for review on Sept. 8, and the cameras won’t go live until the policy is approved.
© 2022 Silicon Valley, San Jose. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
