Local Massachusetts Police Department Expand Use Of
License Plate Scanning and Monitoring
As I first commented on
nearly two years ago,
Massachusetts police departments are actively purchasing and
deploying radical technologies for monitoring the movements of
ordinary law abiding citizens. We are all being scanned, monitored,
and sorted as either suspected of something, or not. But even if you
are not suspected of anything, your movements (by means of your car
location) are tagged with time, date and GPS location, and stored
indefinitely.
As reported in
The Daily Item, Saugus and Revere police departments have
deployed these automatic license plate scanners to identify license
plates in which the car or owner may have legal issues. If your
vehicle is identified as having a stolen car/license plate, or has a
revoked or suspended insurance or registration, the police will be
instantly alerted to your status.
It isn't mentioned in this specific article, but
this technology can be used to identify any issue associated with
the driver/owner as well. If the owner of the vehicle has a
suspended license, or outstanding warrant from a Massachusetts
court, that info can be matched with license plate data and fed into
the system database.
The most frightening part of this is the passive
historical monitoring that is taking place. Mentioned in the news
report is how the data can be used in other ways: some legitimate,
some highly questionable. It reads:
"...if someone denies he was at a location the
night before but the license plate scanner had driven by that
location at that same time, police could look through the
scanner’s records and know the person is lying."
The more of these systems that are on the road, the
more often your movements are being logged by the government. And
this information will be used against you whenever they feel it is
necessary. There no warrant necessary for anyone to collect or
access this data.
And unlike Fastlane systems for automatic toll
payments which tracks your use of the Turnpike, you can't just
choose not to use it. You cannot opt out of this intrusion.
We are all suspects now.
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More on
license plate scanners and
police surveillance.
Elliot Savitz is a Massachusetts Criminal Defense Attorney. If
you are accused of a crime, please call for a free legal
consultation and criminal case evaluation at (781)326-2700. Offices
in Brockton and Dedham, MA, and representing clients in all
Massachusetts criminal courts.
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