US license plate cameras can help police, but privacy concerns raise call for regulation

An automated license plate camera at the intersection of East Phillip Road and Deerpath Drive in Vernon Hills. — Chicago Tribune/TNS

CHICAGO: On a Friday night this spring, surveillance cameras detected a stolen car driving through a Vernon Hills, Illinois neighbourhood. Police were alerted, tracked the car to a nearby gas station, and charged the driver with illegally possessing a stolen vehicle, drugs and a gun.

The arrest was a prime example of how automated license plate recognition, or ALPRs, can help catch criminals and possibly prevent crime, police Chief Patrick Kreis said.