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Resident questions prompt council discussion of license-plate reader retention and records process
Summary
A resident's detailed email about ALPR use and record retention prompted council and staff to explain that ALPR images are retained 30 days unless administratively necessary and that images used in criminal cases are retained as part of the case file; law director emphasized proper public-records procedure.
A resident's lengthy email raising questions about the city's automatic license-plate readers (ALPR) and records-retention policies prompted an extended council discussion Tuesday about how the devices are used and how records are retained.
Councilmember Steve Swiderski introduced the item and said he had forwarded the resident's detailed email to Chief Gillespie. "This most recent was a very detailed thought-up email regarding ... are we maintaining governance over the ALPR cameras, the data, and what we should be doing," Swiderski said.
Law Director Barber and Police Chief Rob Gillespie responded. Barber noted that some public-records requests are not always correctly formed and that staff will comply with the records-retention plan. Chief Gillespie described ALPR practice: images of vehicle fronts and rears are normally deleted after 30 days unless administratively necessary; when the department uses an image in an investigation they print the rear image with date, time and location and place it into a criminal case file.
Barber said the city is "complying with the record retention" plan and urged additional communication with the resident to clarify what information the resident seeks. The council suggested the resident meet with police or present the concerns at a public meeting to resolve outstanding questions.
