High-Tech License Plate Readers on Sussex’s Radar

It may seem like technology straight out of the movie "Minority Report," but it could some day be making its way to Sussex.

Cameras mounted on top of patrolling police cars are now able to scan every license plate the squad car passes, providing instantaneous information about violators faster than a blink of the eye. From stolen vehicles to an expired registration, police wouldn’t miss a thing.

They’re called “automated license plate recognition systems” – license readers for short. Police in areas like Milwaukee, Franklin and with the cameras, and more area police departments are planning to do the same.

And according to Waukesha Sheriff's Deparatment , the new cameras have been on Sussex’s radar.

“The Village of Sussex – I don’t know what their knowledge of the devices are, but I’ve been looking into them,” said Misko, who is director of police services in Sussex. “One thing about them is there’s still an unknown privacy issue, so we’re sitting on the sidelines and taking it in for now. If it looks like the issues are resolved, we might be ready to move forward.”

Torin said he doesn’t want to sink money into the new devices – – only to have the Supreme Court say they violate privacy. However, Torin admits the cameras are a useful took that would make policing the village easier.

"That's Milwaukee," Alioto said. "Theirs was just ding-ding-ding-ding."

The license readers scan at rates in the thousands per minute and can read a plate at a combined speed of 160 mph – for instance, a squad car and an approaching car each traveling at 80 mph. If a car has a violation on record with the Wisconsin Department of Motor Vehicles, it provides a notification to the officer.

Officers in Wauwatosa rode along with Milwaukee police to see what the new devices could do, and according to Wauwatosa Police Sgt. Salvatore “T.J.” Alioto, big-city driving proves the license readers are lightning-quick.

"That's Milwaukee," Alioto said. "Theirs was just ding-ding-ding-ding."

The current system most officers use involves getting a good look at a license plate number, manually entering it into a system and waiting for a response. By that time, Alioto says the suspicious driver could be long gone.

“It would be a lot easier to get that information automatically,” Tornin said. “You can get information about a car being stolen, whether the registration is up to date and other information about the driver, like if a license is valid or if the owner is out for an arrest. It’s a tool that could be used well.”

“You can get information about a car being stolen, whether the registration is up to date and other information about the driver..."

Right now, the Milwaukee Police Department, the Milwaukee County Sheriff’s Department, the Franklin Police Department and the Wauwatosa Police Department are using the system. But Sussex is playing the waiting game.

Because the system can also map out where a person is driving based on where they’ve been scanned, the new system is raising red flags. It’s a privacy issue, and when it comes to cars parked on private property, where is the line drawn?

“The ‘Big Brother’ factor – it’s already been tested in the courts,” Alioto said. “Public areas, streets and parking lots, are not protected… It’s set up not to capture cars in driveways, and the data is not used except in an investigation.”

Tornin says the systems aren’t installed in any of Sussex’s current squad cars, and he’s not sure how long it could be before a solid outcome regarding privacy is reached. He says with government going through tight budgets, the last thing he wants is new, expensive equipment sitting on a shelf.

Patch editor Jim Price contributed to this report.