15 hours ago
Kzoo police shut down immigration-related use of license plate readers
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) — A West Michigan police department has shut off external access to its license plate reader (LPR) cameras after learning the data was being searched by departments 'focused on immigration-related violations.'
The Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety released a statement Friday confirming the agency blocked outside access to its cameras:
'The Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety was recently made aware of nationwide License Plate Recognition (LPR) camera searches being conducted by outside law enforcement agencies focused on immigration-related violations. Once we learned that our city was being listed in these searches, we made the decision to suspend all external law enforcement access to our LPR cameras, except for local public safety partners within Kalamazoo County.
'This action reflects our continued commitment to ensuring these tools are used in a way that aligns with our city's values. KDPS is and will remain a department that all members of the community can trust and feel safe contacting. Protecting that trust is essential to our mission of serving everyone in the City of Kalamazoo with fairness, respect, and accountability.'
A statement released by the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety read
Several West Michigan police agencies, including Grand Rapids, have Flock Safety cameras installed in their jurisdictions. The system automatically reads and records license plates.
The agencies have defended their use of LPRs amid privacy concerns, arguing the system keeps communities safer by preventing and solving crime.
They've also said they do not use the cameras for immigration-related investigations.
The Grand Rapids Police Department released a statement from Police Chief Eric Winstrom Friday addressing the issue:
'I want to assure our community that GRPD does not utilize license plate readers (LPRs) to conduct immigration-related investigations. A GRPD officer has been falsely identified on social media as conducting searches related to immigration enforcement actions. We are not the source of this document, and are unable to verify its origin, but can confirm no GRPD officers are using license plate readers to engage in immigration-related activity.
'This would be in direct conflict with our policy which states in part: The GRPD is neither responsible for, nor has the authority to, enforce federal civil immigration laws used to detain or remove undocumented immigrants from the United States. This means that the GRPD does not serve as a civil immigration enforcement agency for the federal government. The department does not take on the responsibility of performing immigration functions unrelated to investigating and enforcing criminal violations.'
White House puts out list of 500 'sanctuary jurisdictions'
A statement released by Grand Rapids Police Chief Eric Winstrom read
The statements come one week after the U.S. Department of Homeland Security listed and counties among 500 'sanctuary jurisdictions' nationwide.
Both counties refuted that designation.
DHS has since from its website.
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