Alabama, Georgia senators push DOJ for license plate reader safeguards

WASHINGTON (WSFA) - Alabama Sen. Katie Britt (R) is joining Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock of Georgia to push for safeguards on automatic license plate readers.

The senators wrote a letter to the Department of Justice asking the agency to give state and local law enforcement agencies guidance on how to prevent the misuse of cameras, like Flock Safety cameras.

“Flock cameras have proven to be a valuable tool for law enforcement in keeping our communities safe,” Britt wrote. “While I support the technology’s aim, I also believe commonsense safeguards can prevent misuse by a small number of bad actors.”

Law enforcement agencies use the cameras to find stolen cars, locate missing people and investigate other crimes. Britt said the cameras are valuable but recognized there are concerns.

In the senators’ letter, they stated that Flock’s network has more than 120,000 cameras across 49 states that make “billions” of scans per month.

“We are deeply concerned about the misuse of ALPR systems and believe that appropriate safeguards are necessary to protect against unauthorized access and abuse, including by individuals who might misuse the technology to stalk and harass their victims,” Warnock and Britt wrote to Attorney General Todd Blanche. “We also want to ensure that funding of these technologies is paired with appropriate oversight to ensure that the funding is not used to facilitate such abuse.”

The senators’ letter says, to date, that at least 50 law enforcement officers across the country have been charged with or accused of using the systems “for unauthorized purposes.”

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