Lexington police: New license plate cameras have already helped solve multiple crimes
License plate cameras newly installed on Lexington streets have already helped police solve multiple crimes, Lexington city officials said Tuesday.
The Flock Safety Cameras, which are designed to aid police in investigations by capturing license plates and determining whether or not the vehicle is connected to a crime, were installed beginning in late March despite some concerns about how they will be used.
Seven of the 25 are already operational, said Lexington Police Commander Chris Schnelle. The city is installing about four to five a week.
Lexington police have not released the locations of those cameras because they don’t want people to avoid them. They also said they are also concerned about vandalism.
“We’ve located numerous stolen cars and have made arrests,” Schnelle told the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council during a Tuesday work session. Those arrests have also allowed police to solve other crimes.
Within two to three hours of one camera being installed, the camera notified police that a person who had a warrant for a domestic violence incident had been located. That person was arrested, he said.
“We were able to locate that individual quite quickly,” Schnelle said.
The cameras read and record license plates. The license plates are checked to determine if the vehicle is on various lists for criminal activity, including Amber Alerts for kidnapped children, stolen vehicles or vehicles associated with violent offenses. If the plate reader finds a vehicle on those lists, law enforcement is notified.
The cameras cannot be used by law enforcement for traffic offenses — such as running a red light or speeding.
One of the more high profile cases the camera helped solve involved animal cruelty. A dead dog was dumped behind a business on Russell Cave Road in late March. Surveillance camera footage at the scene revealed a partial license plate. The new camera system was able to match that partial license plate to a vehicle, police said.
Caldwell Smith was later charged with second degree animal cruelty in that case.
The city recently partnered with Flock Safety and the National Police Foundation to use the cameras for a one-year pilot study. The city did not have to pay for the cameras.
The cameras are not without controversy.
The American Civil Liberties Union and other groups have raised questions about where the cameras will be located. Crime statistics only show who gets caught, not the level of crime in an area, the ACLU and others have said. That means too many cameras will likely be placed in minority neighborhoods.
Lexington police have said the cameras will be placed throughout the county and that no one area of town will be targeted.
Other Kentucky cities with similar camera systems include Owensboro and Madisonville.
