The Honolulu Police Department (HPD) shall utilize
Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) technology
only for official law enforcement purposes. The goal
is to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of its
public safety efforts in a manner that safeguards the
privacy concerns of law abiding citizens.
DEFINITIONS
A. ALPR Operator: A sworn member of the department
who has been trained and certified in the use of the ALPR
in-vehicle equipment.
B. ALPR: A device that uses cameras and computer
technology to compare digital images of license plates to
lists of known plates of interest.
C. Detection: Data obtained by an ALPR of license
plates within public view that were read by the device,
including potential images of the plate and vehicle on
which it was displayed. Also, information regarding the
location of the police vehicle at the time of the ALPR
data collection.
E. Hot List: License plate(s) associated with vehicles
of interest from an associated database, including (but
not limited to) the National Crime Information Center
(NCIC) or the City and County of Honolulu computer system.
F. Special Hot List: License plate(s) associated with vehicles
of interest entered into the ALPR system by the commander of
the Criminal Investigation Division (CID) or designee for official
law enforcement purposes.
D. Hit: An alert from the ALPR system that a scanned license
plate number may be in a hot list database for a specific reason.
Reasons include (but are not limited to) being a stolen vehicle or
a vehicle used in a crime or associated to a wanted or missing person.
GENERAL
A. ALPR systems shall be used only by sworn or
civilian members of the department who have been
trained and certified in the use of the equipment
pursuant to HPD requirements and operational protocols.
B. No sworn or civilian member shall use or authorize
the use of any ALPR system or ALPR database information
for any reasons other than official law enforcement purposes.
C. A hit by the ALPR system does not establish probable
cause for taking law enforcement action. In the absence of
exigent circumstances, stolen vehicle data must be confirmed
with the Communications Division prior to taking any related
law enforcement action.
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
A. General Use
ALPR systems shall be deployed for official l
aw enforcement purposes, including (but not
limited to) locating stolen vehicles, suspect
vehicles, stolen license plates, wanted or missing
persons, or vehicles placed on the special hot lists.
B. ALPR Administrator
The ALPR Administrator shall be the commander of the CID or designee and shall:
1. Ensure that all ALPR system equipment is inspected, at minimum, on a quarterly basis;
2. Coordinate training for all current and future ALPR users;
3. Ensure that information from the ALPR system is distributed to the appropriate division; and
4. Maintain the list of authorized users and access rights.
ALPR Operators
ALPR operators shall:
1. Ensure that the ALPR camera is properly affixed to their assigned police vehicle at the start of their shift and shall inspect the units for damage.
Discovery of any ALPR equipment that is inoperable or damaged in any way shall not be used and shall immediately be reported to the ALPR Administrator via telephone or e-mail;
2. Start the ALPR system software to activate the system and receive the automatic updated hot list at the beginning of each shift;
3. Ensure that the ALPR system is operating properly in accordance with the ALPR training;
4. Conduct a search of their detections at the beginning of their shift and at least once during their shift, ensuring the system is working properly; and
5. Not attempt to repair defective or inoperable ALPR equipment.
D. ALPR operators in marked police vehicles shall keep the ALPR activated through their entire shift and should park the patrol vehicle strategically to maximize data collection.
E. ALPR operators in unmarked vehicles should keep the ALPR activated through their entire shift except for operational needs.
F. ALPR Hits
1. When an alarm is received alerting operators of a hit from a hot list database, a digital image of the license plate will be displayed on the ALPR computer screen.
2. ALPR operators shall compare the digital image of the license plate to the hot list information to verify the hit for both the state and characters on the plate.
3. ALPR operators shall confirm the ALPR information with the Communications Division to confirm the status of the vehicle prior to taking enforcement or other type of police action absent of exigent circumstances.
4. ALPR operators shall submit appropriate HPD police report(s) for confirmed hits.
ALPR DATA
A. Data Security
1. All ALPR data downloaded to the server will
be purged after a period of ninety days unless it
has become evidence in a criminal or civil action
or is subject to a lawful action to produce records.
2. Downloaded ALPR data will be stored at a secured,
offsite Federal Bureau of Investigation-certified data storage location.
B. Sharing Data
1. ALPR data shall not be shared with non-law
enforcement personnel or agencies (e.g., media,
general public, etc.) without the written approval
of the Chief of Police or designee.
2. ALPR data may be provided to requesting law
enforcement agencies or personnel only with the
approval of the Chief of Police or designee.
3. Upon request, ALPR data may be provided to
HPD personnel with the approval of the ALPR Administrator.
C. Hot Lists
1. The hot list will be automatically downloaded into
the ALPR system a minimum of four times a day with the
most current data overwriting the old data.
2. Special hot lists will be manually uploaded into
he ALPR system, which will automatically be downloaded
into the in-vehicle ALPR computers. It is the responsibility
of the CID commander to ensure that vehicles are removed
from the special hot lists.
3. License plates shall immediately be removed from the
special hot list as soon as they are no longer needed.
D. System Access
Authorized ALPR users are required to sign in to operate the
ALPR system or access data by utilizing a secure password.