KOOTENAI COUNTY, Idaho – Sheriff’s Deputies in Kootenai County are losing access to Automated License Plate Readers, a tool used by many law enforcement agencies. This comes following a decision by the County Commissioner’s office earlier this week to cut funding for the software.
In a meeting with County Commissioners to discuss the budget for ALPR, Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris pushed to keep the technology, before ultimately storming out.
“Well, officer safety doesn’t matter to you folks,” Norris said to County Commissioners. He then turned to direct his uniformed deputies, “Let’s go.”
The group exited the meeting quickly, with some civilians in plain clothes leaving alongside them.
The ALPR technology only became available to Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office earlier this year. The readers are mounted in deputies’ patrol vehicles.
Norris says that, so far this year, ALPR technology was used in 419 inquiries and in solving 19 cases. However, County Commissioners say that these figures include data from stationary cameras that read plates as well, which will not be affected by this budget cut. The County says they have not seen a quantifiable return on investment with the car-mounted readers.
“What are we supposed to do,” County Commissioner Bruce Mattare asked in the meeting. “This is our problem. I appreciate what you’re saying, but, you have to understand the challenges of trying to manage all this money and making it so we don’t blow the budget up.”
While Norris made it clear that he believes the ALPR software is worth the cost, the County held firm, voting 2 to 3 not to renew the contract. This decision saves the county 24 thousand dollars.
