Law enforcement using license plate cameras

More Mississippi law enforcement agencies are expanding their reach with license plate cameras. It’s a growing trend that law enforcement says helps departments operate more efficiently.

Justin Glowacki with the Roy Howard Community Journalism Center shows what that looks like in Lucedale.

Across Mississippi, more agencies are using automated license plate readers.

They’re 24/7 surveillance cameras that track vehicles and can send alerts to law enforcement.

Lucedale Police Chief Kellum Fairley says he hopes the technology will expand his department’s effectiveness. “Anything that comes by that camera is going to instantly pick it up. Whereas a police officer, he’s going to only see it as far as what he can see with his eyes.”

Stone County installed the system a year ago, and Sheriff Todd Stewart says it’s made a positive impact in their community. “We’ve had several cases where we’ve been able to use it to locate loved ones that needed help. We’ve also used it to solve crimes.”

Despite law enforcement support, not all drivers are on board with automatic cameras.

Lucedale resident Kasha Martin says technology isn’t flawless. She’s concerned drivers maybe mistakenly identified. “I don’t think the government should be tracking people from their license plates. I just don’t think that’s a good thing.”

Others like Autumn Eckhoff says the benefits outweigh the risks. “I feel like it would probably be a good idea for that kind of stuff, because we do have a lot of traffic that runs from Mobile, Pascagoula, all that stuff. So, I think it is pretty good to be able to track people like that.”

Lucedale Police Chief Fairley says his department is working out the final details before they install their automated license plate readers.