Oak Creek Police Seek Access To License Plate Reader Database

OAK CREEK, WI — A proposed agreement between the Oak Creek Police Department and automated license plate reader company Flock Group Inc, would give the department access to a database of license plate information collected by the company's devices.

Flock collects license plate data from private and government groups with automated plate reader technology such as cameras. Some nearby police departments and at least one homeowner's association in Oak Creek already make use of automated license plate reader technology like Flock's, according to city documents. The agreement could be part of a wider initiative by Oak Creek police to bring Flock devices to the city.

The Common Council is scheduled to review the proposed agreement during its meeting Tuesday. A report on the topic was prepared by Police Chief David Stecker and submitted to the council by City Administrator Andrew Vickers.

Under the proposed agreement, Oak Creek police would be able to access the system to search for a suspect. Police would also be able to submit a "hot list" of known offenders to locate them when they pass a Flock device, a report to the council said. The report said the proposed agreement wouldn't bring any costs to the city, but it could be the first phase of a three-part plan.

The second phase could work with local businesses to install their own Flock devices to contribute to the database and the third phase could bring several Flock devices to "higher crime" areas of the city, according to documents submitted to the council.

The Oak Creek Police Department's need for Flock's data — which the company stores for 30 days — is furthered by an "overwhelming" amount of vehicle thefts that have been seen around the metro area and Oak Creek, said the police report to the council.

"We need more tools to combat the increase in crime and those done using a vehicle in the commission of crime," Stecker wrote to the council.

The addition of access to Flock's information would reduce the time required to locate suspects and offenders, increasing the possibility that a crime is solved, but it does not reduce the need for more personnel, Stecker wrote.

Flock's system has been used to catch suspects and offenders in other parts of the nation. A vehicle spotted by one of Flock's cameras in North Carolina alerted officers there to a vehicle that was wanted in connection with a carjacking, leading to an arrest, The Bladen Journal reported.