On Tuesday, the Oakley City Council directed the Oakley Police Department to stop sharing ALPR data with out of state law enforcement agencies.
City Attorney Derek Cole reported out of closed session, on a possible litigation item, that the council directed the Oakley Police Department to stop sharing Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) data with out of state agencies at this time. This was in response to a letter the city received from Attorney General Rob Bonta.
Cole said in closed session, the motion was made by Councilmember Aaron Meadows and seconded by Shannon Shaw. The vote was unanimous (5-0).
This dates back to an advisory issued last fall (Oct 30) where Attorney General Rob Bonta advised Advises California Law Enforcement on Legal Uses and Management of Automated License Plate Recognition Data. Oakley simply disagreed with Bonta and continued with its practice of sharing data.
In March, Oakley Police Lt. Robert Roberts admitted the Oakley Police Department was still sharing data according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
“We are still sharing data with agencies outside of California,” Robert Roberts, a police lieutenant in the Contra Costa County community of Oakley, told the Chronicle. He said his department had told Bonta’s office it disagreed with the attorney general’s interpretation of the law and never got a response. But after this story was published, Bonta’s office forwarded an email it had sent to Roberts in November that said sharing license-plate reader data with out-of-state agencies was prohibited by state law.
Roberts confirmed the quote this week, but could not offer any other commentary.
With Tuesdays council action, it now creates a directive for the Oakley Police Department to follow who were one of the last holdouts. Oakley argues ALPR help with human trafficking cases, stolen vehicles, wanted suspends, and many other cases including Amber Alerts—noting the interpretation of the law really hurts border cities where suspects can cross state lines.
Going back to May 2023, 71 agencies received letters from the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California (ACLU NorCal), and the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California (ACLU SoCal) demanding Police Stop Sharing Drivers’ Location Data With Police In Anti-Abortion States.
In the San Francisco Bay Area, agencies who received a letter included:
- Antioch Police Department (Contra Costa County)
- Brentwood Police Department (Contra Costa County)
- Hercules Police Department (Contra Costa County)
- Manteca Police Department (San Joaquin County)
- Menifee Police Department (Riverside County)
- Merced Police Department (Merced County)
- Novato Police Department (Marin County)
- Pittsburg Police Department (Contra Costa County)
- Rio Vista Police Department (Solano County)
- Ripon Police Department (San Joaquin County)
- San Pablo Police Department (Contra Costa County)
- San Rafael Police Department (Marin County)
- San Ramon Police Department (Contra Costa County)
- Stockton Police Department (San Joaquin County)
- Tracy Police Department (San Joaquin County)
- Walnut Creek Police Department (Contra Costa County)
Other Tidbits:
In June of 2024, the Sacramento Grand Jury issued a release saying that Sacramento County motorists’ privacy in jeopardy from
intricate network of law enforcement license-plate cameras. The Grand Jury said while these systems provide law enforcement with a powerful tool for legitimate investigations, they also present considerable risks of indiscriminate mass surveillance, potentially tracking innocent individuals as well as the possible misuse of their data.
“We found the ALPR system couldn’t distinguish between cars used in criminal activities and those operated legally,” said Steve Caruso, foreperson of the 2023-24 Grand Jury. “And we subsequently learned that both the Sheriff’s Office and Sacramento Police Department have been lax in following state law regarding how ALPR data is shared with other law enforcement entities.”
SB 34 strictly prohibited sharing data with any out-of-state LEA, as well as any federal law enforcement agencies.
“The Grand Jury was surprised to learn that both the Sheriff’s Office and Sacramento Police Department were violating SB 34,” Caruso said. “However, after meeting with the Sheriff’s Office in the course of our investigation, they decided to stop sharing ALPR data with out-of-state LEAs.”
The Grand Jury also said that the Sacramento Police Department continues to share ALPR data with Washington, Oregon, Nevada, and Arizona LEAs.
Back in October 2023, Attorney General Bonta Advises California Law Enforcement on Legal Uses and Management of Automated License Plate Recognition Data. With the notice, it was providing guidance and model policies regarding the use of data collected or accessed through an Automated License Plate Recognition (ALPR) system. Attorney General Bonta reminds agencies of their obligation to ensure that the storage, collection, sharing, and use of this information is consistent with California law.
