SANTA BARBARA, Calif. (KGTV) — Twelve cameras have been scanning license plates across Santa Barbara since late 2023, helping police track stolen vehicles and assist with criminal investigations.
Now, concerns about who controls that information and how it is stored have the Santa Barbara City Council considering a change.
Alec McLaughlin, who works across the street from one of the city’s 12 Flock cameras, said he was skeptical of the technology.
“Kind of just seems like a big waste of money to me, to be completely honest,” McLaughlin said.
McLaughlin said he knew the cameras were being used around the city but did not realize one was located near his workplace.
The cameras capture a vehicle’s license plate, along with the time and location where the vehicle was detected. Police say the information has helped locate stolen vehicles and support investigations.
In the past 30 days alone, Santa Barbara’s 12 Flock cameras recorded more than 323,000 license-plate readings, according to a Flock camera map.
But the city is ending its contract with Flock and considering a new system from Verkada.
Under the proposed system, the city would own the cameras and the police department would control the data. The information would not be stored in broader regional or multi-agency databases.
Santa Barbara resident Jaimie Berg said she supports using the cameras for public safety.
“I’ve heard stuff with ICE and with the cameras,” Berg said. “If it’s for protection, to get drunk drivers, to get criminals, I’m all for it.”
The proposed Verkada system would retain license-plate data for 30 days before automatically purging it, unless the information is needed as evidence in a criminal or civil case or must otherwise be retained by law.
But not everyone supports expanding or continuing the use of automated license plate readers.
“There’s a movement across the country against mass surveillance,” said Santa Barbara resident Bob Kryczko. “It’s not good civil hygiene. It’s not good safety practice.”
The Santa Barbara City Council is scheduled to consider the proposed Verkada system Tuesday.
