License plate readers (LPR) are in the works for Hockley County as the Commissioners’ Court approves final agreements for the Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff Ray Scifres said the readers are designed to capture license plate data rather than act as active, recording surveillance cameras.
The devices would be connected with databases that would not only locate stolen vehicles, but also tie into Amber, Blue and Silver alerts, Scifres said.
“It will alert that this person has crossed over one of these areas where an LPR is, to alert local law enforcement that the vehicle may be in the area,” Scifres said.
During the Commissioners’ Court Sept. 23 meeting, Doug Clements, administrator of the South Plains Auto Theft Task Force, said funding from the Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention Authority allowed them to start bringing the reader systems to the force’s jurisdictions.
Using the cameras in Hockley and other counties will prevent drug and stealing crimes that move between jurisdictions, Clement said.
“We’re spreading these out into the region to stop that network the criminals have,” Clement said. “At least, if we can catch up with them.”
Clement said the cameras were implemented in Lubbock and have been instrumental in county’s arrests and law enforcement work.
A mutual cooperation agreement between Hockley County Sheriff’s Office and the South Plains Auto Theft Task Force was approved during the meeting to address funding.
A step that followed was a grant match approval in October, which Scifres said would cover access to the data from the readers for two years.
While the preliminary agreements are completed, Scifres said, installation of the cameras has not started, and the locations of the cameras have not been decided on. The timeline of the installation is also open-ended.
Before installation can begin, agreements would have to be made with property owners of the locations that the readers would be placed. Scifres said they would also have to return to the Commissioners’ Court.
The cameras would not only help locate people in danger and criminal activity, but also allow them to recover stolen vehicles passing through the covered areas, the sheriff said.
The project would ultimately help the task force and law enforcement in the area with information sharing and intelligence, he said.
“So, we want to continue to foster those partnerships,” Scifres said.