License Plate Readers, Highway Pilot Program, and New Offense

A few months ago, I wrote about Session Law 2023-151 providing for new sentencing enhancements for breaking or entering motor vehicles and other conveyances. Another part of the bill, Part V, authorizes a pilot program for placing and using automatic license plate readers (ALPRs) on “state rights-of-way.” It also adds G.S. 20-183.33 to Article 3D of Chapter 20, making it a Class 1 misdemeanor for anyone to obtain, access, preserve, or disclose data collected by ALPRs in any manner other than that allowed by the Article. The readers are already in use across much of the state, so what will the effect be of the pilot program? And what are the implications of criminalizing the unlawful access or mishandling of data collected? Read on for more.

The state of automatic license plate readers

For years, law enforcement agencies have employed ALPRs on city-controlled roadways. Cities such as Charlotte, Raleigh, Greensboro, and Fayetteville have credited the readers with reducing crime and quickly apprehending wanted suspects on the road. The readers are placed near roadways or on law enforcement vehicles, and scan each license plate that drives past. Those plates are then checked against a database of wanted or flagged plates. The database can mark a “hit” for anything from an expired registration to a stolen car or fugitive alert. An alert is sent to law enforcement, who then decide if and how they will respond. Now, S.L. 2023-151 authorizes the Department of Transportation to enter into agreements with the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation for the placement and use of the readers on any state-controlled roadway. This has the potential to be a remarkable expansion – nearly 80% of North Carolina roadways are controlled by the state rather than by municipalities.