Holly Gilvary
YORKVILLE — The Racine County Sheriff’s Office will soon incorporate Automatic License Plate Reader technology to assist with investigations.
The Racine County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday authorized a two-year contract with software company Flock Safety to pilot the technology. RCSO will use a $75,000 grant from the Wisconsin Department of Justice Intervention Program to pay for the contract.
The technology works by capturing vehicle images and license plates using a solar-powered camera, and stamps the date, time and location, turning the images into searchable data, according to RCSO Capt. James Evans.
“The technology itself is truly just a solar-powered camera,” he told board members. “It’s the software that we’re paying for that powers the camera which makes it so unique.”
The contract includes 10 cameras, which Evans said RCSO will place along high-traffic routes, including Interstate 94.
The board voted 15-1 to approve the contract, with Supervisor Jody Spencer voting against it.
Spencer said she appreciates the RCSO’s intention for the technology but was worried what could happen if the data compiled from the Automatic License Plate Readers, colloquially referred to as “ALPRs,” gets into the wrong hands.
“What limits do we think we will actually have to control where the data goes?” Spencer said. “We need to be vigilant and ask questions about how our local data is used now and well into the future.”
Evans said RCSO will own all data collected and only RCSO can authorize sharing.
Data collected from ALPRs can only be stored for 30 days, unless it is being used in an investigation, and accessing APLR data requires a reason, such as a stolen vehicle, missing person or crime in progress, Evans said.
The board also approved an ordinance that will temporarily adjust the speed limit on parts of County Trunk Highway C for the duration of three development projects, lasting through Dec. 31, 2026.
The speed limit will be lowered to 50 mph for all vehicles from the intersection with State Trunk Highway 20 easterly to a point 3,650 feet west of the intersection with County Trunk Highway V, and from this point, 35 mph to a point 850 feet east of the intersection with County Trunk Highway V.
In other business, the board:
- Established parameters for the sale of general obligation promissory notes in the not-to-exceed amount of $25,510,000 related to the remaining portion of Racine County’s 911 dispatch center capital project and the first phase of the public safety building capital project.
- Established parameters for the sale of general obligation promissory notes in the not-to-exceed amount of $7,500,000 for the second phase of the Reefpoint Marina capital project.
- Delegated the authority to enter into settlement agreements with opioid defendants to the designated Racine County officer(s).
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