High-Tech Scanning for License Plates
Gulfport is the initial law-enforcement group in Mississippi to test the Mobile Plate Hunter 900. The license-plate scanner connects cameras on police vehicles and laptop computers to a nationwide crime database.
The system includes a pair of digital cameras connected to the top of a police cruiser. They scan license plates on vehicles that are both parked and in motion, employing infrared technology to see images at night.
Equipment inside the police vehicle constantly scans license plates and checks them against a nationwide database of over 300,000 stolen cars and additional information.
After the device goes off, the officer radios a dispatcher to confirm the data prior to pulling the vehicle over.
Gulfport Police Chief Alan Weatherford stated that the scanner will save time and manpower. It costs around $20,000 to equip a patrol car with the scanner.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center (NLECTC) from the Biloxi Sun Herald (MS); 05/25/07; P. A2; Fitzgerald, Robin.