Re: i think this is a little overbord on radar
As mentioned above... this is a plate reader. Awesome piece of kit. We just got one of the first units in our state.
Reads license plates on parked and moving vehicles and its ability to see, read and process plates is very good. If the plate is expired or has issues, or is linked to a licensee with a suspension, an active warrant, etc. etc. etc, it will alert us via the MDT so we can make a stop.
It's also linked via the MDT system, so that if a plate goes into the system (ie. for an Amber Alert or a stolen car or a BOLo)... every cruiser in the area equipped with the system instantly starts looking. If we pass a car that we have PC on and can't safely turn for a stop, it alerts the nearest cruiser. Driving through a big parking lot is amazing... The thing goes off like a pinball machine.
What it does NOT do is tell us if someone is a past offender, once-upon-a-time-DUI, smoked a bong when you were 17, owns more than 3 rifles, etc. It does not report the positions of cars. It doesn't archive the vehicles it reads, except those that are linked to some kind of PC. It only hits on active wants and warrants or DMV violations -- in other words, the stuff we're already looking for.
I know, I know. Privacy advocates will be all a-twitter about the Orwellian 'Man. But the fact is: it's helping us get wanted felons, drunks, suspended licensees, etc. of the streets. In short, it's happening us catch criminals.
If your 'stuff' is clean, the system completely ignores you.
Also, to respond to Cowboy1978, at least in our state, we do NOT need PC to run a plate. Plenty of our guys sit by the road with the MDT and run plates as the cars go by. As long as you run every plate (or every third plate or some pattern other than picking cars based on occupants), there is no profiling involved and we are very careful about that. You would be surprised by the number of 'quality' hits that come in. And by the number of dirtbags we take off the streets that way.
Cheers,
Sirhr
