In the past, if an eyewitness to a crime noted only the color or make of a vehicle or one letter of a license plate, it made guesswork out of police work.
“That wouldn’t have been great information before,” Fredericksburg Police Chief Brian Layton told City Council earlier this week. “That’s not much of a lead, honestly.”
However, coupled with License Plate Recognition (LPR) camera technology, each bit of detail can help law enforcement get a clearer picture of vehicles that have either been stolen or involved in the commission of a crime.
Layton appeared before City Council to propose putting a pair of grants toward the lease of eight LPR cameras, to be placed at “gateways” around the city. The cameras, which are owned and operated by a company called Flock Safety, are used by more than 4,000 agencies nationwide, Layton said.
Fredericksburg Director of Finance Robyn Shugart said a grant from the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services totals $12,600 with a $3,150 required local match. A Virginia State Police grant is $12,500 with no local match required.
Layton said that in Fairfax County, where LPRs were first implemented in November 2022, police recovered 30 stolen vehicles, six firearms, arrested 50 offenders and located four missing people in the first five months cameras were operational.
The Flock data would be used for investigative purposes only and would be deleted from the database 30 days after collection, Layton said. The system also includes a “transparency portal,” which Layton said he intends to publish on the police department’s website.
Councilor Will Mackintosh (at-large) asked Layton why the cameras would only be placed at gateways as opposed to various spots through the city.
“Gateways is the fairest thing to do,” Layton replied. “We’re not targeting a specific neighborhood with this. It’s simply vehicles coming in and exiting the city. I think it’s a good way to start with this program.”
In response to a question from Councilor Jon Gerlach (Ward 2), Layton said that the investigator working a case would handle Flock searches and testify to any evidence generated in court.
Following Layton’s presentation, councilors voted 7-0 to amend the fiscal year 2025 budget to allocate the grant funds for LPRs. The annual cost for the program is $3,000 per camera.
Mackintosh revealed that he’s had four catalytic converters stolen from cars parked on city streets in recent years and asked Layton a “selfish question” if Flock could help prevent similar crimes.
“It certainly could,” Layton said.
“Good,” replied Mackintosh, “because that’s been frustrating.”
