Community discussion on Automatic License Plate Recognition system

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to trust in your County government and/or the Los Alamos Police Department.

• The Chief said protocols have been in place for "years." Why are we just hearing about it now?
  Why didn't the LAPD tell us years ago when they first put up the cameras?
  Why were we not told that were being surveyed for the past 3 years??
• Most of Axon's Ethics Board resigned due to concerns about the company's direction (I believe in 2022 or 2024), does this concern you regarding contracts?
• Why can't we put a hold on this process until we have a civilian committee to audit these systems or legistlation that we can vote on to use the recorded aggregate data?
• You admit that you're one breach away from losing trust. How will you respond when that happens?
• What is the problem we are trying to solve?
• I trust the current leadership at the County but what happens when they retire or leave?
• We do NOT want this. Why are you proceeding?
• What are you worried about that you won't let us ask question in the live format?
  Is there a reason we have to write these questions instead of having a conversation.
  PIO: We selected this format specifically to provide everyone an equal voice and give a chance to record and respond to all of the questions.
• If the answer to the last question is they can't why does the policce think this system is more important than than public trust?
• I don't trust LAPD or LA County to audit itself.
• How do ou justify warrantless mass surveillance at all, Let alone in a town that was specifically created to fight for freedom?
• How can the public trust police oversight when officers are responsible for monitoring & investigating themselves, and does this create a conflict of interest that can become a major failure point in accountability?
• Is this worth giving up our civil liberties.
• These work - they helped catch the [people] that broke into J&L Storage
• ALPRs represent a national security risk. The ALPRs are building a pattern of life for lab employees which is a crucial first step that any foreign intelligence agency needs to take. No data base like this is secure from nation state tools, you must assume it can be breached, and the labs provide a rationale. You may not track every one, but the data does. IT also normalizes otherwise reportable suspicious behavior. All to combat an objectively very low crime rate.
• I don't want to be surveiled. I'm a private citizen. You make this sound okay in THEORY, but the reality can be quite different. As technology improves, these devices could become more intrusive. Maybe all the officers using the system won't always be ethical & "play by the rules." I don't think think is a good thing, even if you use safely & catching criminals as the reason for it.
• Even with all the alleged guard rails, I do not want a surveilance state.
• How would you feel if someone were to record every movement of your family, not give you access, and upload it to some random server
• More and more communities are terminating their contracts with Flock (Taos, Flagstaff AZ, Santa Cruz CA, Eugene OR, Cambridge MA, Hillsborough NC). White Rock is by far the safest community I have lived in (Thank you!) Why are we doing this when there's so much public outcry about ALPR?
• Statements of transparency fall flat when we just learned that ALPR cameras have been active for 3 years!!

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to the process of law or the legality of the system.

• Is LA County aware of limiting constitutional rights?
• Dhow does PD get a search warrant?
• Is Judicial System eliminated by lack of search warranr process?
• Why doesn't IPRA apply?
  Why is this not subject to IPRA? Seem to be non transparent
• If a federal judge gives you a subpoena for information on an ICE case, will you honor it?
• If a local judge gives you a subpoena to track someone for a divorce case, will you honor it?
• If you destroy any data, why don't you think attorneys or a judge will comeback on you for destroying evidence.
• Citizens should all be paid a fee each time their vehicle is photographed. Call it a "data stripping fee."
• We have the assumption of innocense in America. Why aren't you receiving a warrant from a Judge. Admin is not part of Judicial system. Violates Article IV of the Bill of Rights
  How does this not violate the 4 amendement? I expect some level of privacy.
• Why does the Constitution not apply in Los Alamos County?
• Why can't a judge be in the loop?
• Why are you concerned if you've not broken the Law?
• Legality aside, the governor signed into law that data is "confidential". I should have confidentiality to go where I want. Why not join the three NM locations that fired flock?

   

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to how the Los Alamos Police Department is handling the operation of the system through Policy 206.

• How will someone violating the LAPD procedures be caught?
  LAPD: This is where the audit process comes into play. 100% of access and use of the system is reviewed frequently.

• What prevents LAPD from making policy changes without the council or public voting on a change?
  What prevents tonite's policy from being changed tomorrow?

  LAPD: Our policy and policy review for all polices is an orgainic process. This allows us to adapt to changes in the community, national events, technology changes, and so forth. We change policies regularly and annually. For example, when case law changes or new laws are passed, we update policies. 

• How have officers in other juridictions been able to stalk their former or current partners using these sytems if you need to put a case number and reason? Do they just make this up?
• What discipline is imposed on officers who are found to misuse the ALPR system?
  What will the punitice measure be if someone misuses the system

  Is misue of the system on automatic reason for dismisal of an officer.
  LAPD: It depends on the situation and the type of misuse, but dismissal certainly could be an option.

• What is the procedure if the administrators find illegal or unethical or not work related searches. Does this become public knowledge?

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to technical aspects of the Axon system and how the system in implemented in the field.

• Where are current cameras and where do you plan to put more cameras?
  Where are these cameras Located, specifically?
  How many cameras are going up and where?
  Fixed cameras? Where? How many?
  How many Axon cameras will be installed?
  Where are the stationary cameras located? How does LAPD or LA County determine where to place these?
  How many Axon cameras are deployed or planned, both mobile & stationary?
  How many Motorola cameras are deployed in Los Alamos County? Where exactly are they?

  LAPD: We have 16 fixed cameras deployed along major roadways. All marked LAPD patrol units have a mobile version of the system as well.

• Flock & Axon are sponsored by Palantier's Founders to collect data & info for surveillance. Has Technocracy infiltrated our constitutional rights by claiming it is for safety?
• Is AI technology used for predictive programming?
• When will drones be implemented?
• Flock Alpha Drones?
• How is AI used in due surveillance?
• How reliant are we on AI?
• Screenshot of Axon query form did not show a case # input. Please assure us that this is required.
  Axion does not have a case # line - why not? It should.
  Case # rep'd for Axon? Not shown on slide.
  LAPD: It is under the "Reason" field. It is required to have a case number in the description.
• Can Axon add a "Hot" vehicle without a full licese plate?
  LAPD: No, we must have a full plate to be entered.
•  What is to prevent using AI to integrate cell tower "pings" into this system to build a "system of records"?
• Why change from Motorola to Axon.
  LAPD: To streamline our operations, we have switched over to Axon for many reasons. For example, we use them for our body-worn cameras, officer training, reporting, and in-the-field translations. Having a streamlined system makes our officers more efficient and available to the community by cutting down on the hours to file reports and other administrative tasks.

  
  

• Axon has the same capabilities as Flock!
  LAPD: While both companies have ALPR systems, a key difference is that LAPD owns the data and the data are not shared except with an MOU with another law enforcement agency.

  
  

• Why are their flock cameras in town?
  LAPD: There are no Flock Safety cameras in the entire County. LAPD uses only Motorola and Axon cameras.

• What about residents reporting dangerous drivers - would you look at ALPR?
  LAPD: Not likely as the system requires an active investigation for an officer to review any ALPR data.
• What other surveillance devices does the County use - facial recognition? Video observation cameras?
• Are you using axon fuses system?
  Does County use Axon Fuses or Vision?
• Are both Motorola and Axon systems continuing together? (No Motorola is going away)
  How many additional ALPR cameras will be posted to the 13 cameras already in Los Alamos County? This does not include the proposed speeding traffic cameras projected to be installed.

  LAPD: Correct that we are phasing out the Motorola system and replacing it with the Axon system.

• Are police car plate readers inefficient?
  LAPD: No, they are efficient for officers.

• Why doesn’t the county opt out of providing data back to Axon for training purposes? Why do officers need virtual reality headsets as part of this contract?

• No if Axon’s rep cannot answer these questions - my vote is No for this company

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to the ALPR system contract and how the ALPR system is funded.

• Why not spend the Axon money on more policemen?
  Has a cost benefit analysis been done on the county's ALPR system? How much does it cost and how does it compare with the cost of hiring additional police officers instead?
• Does the public know the contract is $6,000,000?
  Did the County Council specifically vote on the funding or was it buried in the department budget?

  How much does the Axon contract cost?
  How long is the contract for?
  Contract is for 10 years - is the public aware of this?
  How much is yearly contract?
  What is the initial cost, and the annual operation cost to the county?
  How much did the cameras cost
  How much is the re-occurring cost
  How approved this?
  What is the cost of this vendor? How much tax dollars are going to this vendor. How can the public get their privacy policies
  LAPD: The full 10-year contract with Axon—which includes body cameras, data storage, language translation, training, ALPRs, and reports—is available for everyone to review on the ALPR web page. Council approved the Axon package on 1/27/26 7-0.

• Are there grants associated w/ this project? If so, who is funding this?
  LAPD: No grants are associated with this system.
• Are county Council members being paid by Flock Safety to accept these contracts?
  LAPD: No.
• What is the funding source for the cameras?
  Who is paying for this?
  LAPD: General funds.
• When was the contract signed?
  LAPD: The County Manager signed the contract on 1/28/2026
• Why did the FBI add clarification to the contract but it wasn't signed on the contract?
• LA County is Incorporated - so it is a contract between two private companies. The citizens did not vote on this. Why not?
• Confidentiality clause in contract: "reasonable measures"? Is that to avoid disclosure dissemination?
• What entity instigated it?
• How much does this cost per year compared to resources spent on traffic safety enforcement? Given that it is not used to enforce traffic laws (eg speeding), is this the best use of funds given the high traffic volumes through the county due to the daily commute to work at LANL? Would it be better to use these funds to enforce traffic laws to improve traffic safety in Los Alamos County?

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to how the data is stored, the security of the data, and how the data is protected from theft.

• Where is the data stored?
  What data center stores the data
  Where exactly is the data stored?
  Where exactly is thi data stored?
  Where are the servers? Who owns them?
  Where is the database stored?
  Is data stored physically in Los Alamos?

  Axon: The data is stored on Microsoft and Amazon cloud servers.

• Why is data stored at LANL?
  LAPD: No data is stored at the laboratory; all data are on cloud servers.
• You assure us it is "secure," but every week I get another notice of "data breech" -
  What siphers are used on the device?
  What measures have been put in place to protect against hacking?
• Why do the cams use public IPs?
  I NOTICED SEVERAL DIFFERENT IP ADDRESSES ON ONE THE SCREENS.  ARE THE COMPUTERS IN A SAFE ROOM OR AT THE OFFICER DESK?
  IF THEY ARE THEN WHAT HAPPENS IF THE OFFICER HAS TO LEAVE AND DOES NOT LOG OFF?  SOMEONE ELSE COULD SIT DOWN AND ENTER ANYTHING THEY WANT.
  If they are using the them at their desk, what happens if they get called away and do not log off?
• What is the update process for the cameras?
• How many security breaches has Axon experienced in the last 5 years? How many updates and vulnerbilities has Axon identified in that timeframe.

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to how LAPD uses the data.

• Statistics from FBI on solving crimes - success rate?
• There will be false positives. What safeguards are in place to prevent stopping (or worse) of innocent civilians?

  LAPD: Officers are required to verify thru dispatch and NCIC before taking any immediate action with an alert.

• Is this data evidence quality?
  LAPD: It could be used as evidence in a case

• Can the vendor sell the data to other parties?

• If they are this great how many positions in the PD where eliminated

• What problem are you trying to solve?
  We need detailed information about actual crimes have been resolved over 3 years of the Motorola system, more than a few examples.
  How many offenders have been successfully prosecuted as a result of arrests from the cameras?
  How many offenders have been arrested in Los Alamos since these cameras have been installed?
  How many have led directly to arrests.

• How many actionable alerts does the LAPD use in a given year?
  LAPD: We have had 273 since May 2024.

• Are all cars recorded?
  What is the alert level of no plate?
  LAPD: It records all vehicle plates that pass by a fixed location. Mobile patrol units also record plates. No record is made if there is no plate.

• With Motorola & Axon ALPR give alert if license plate cannot be read.
  LAPD: Yes, if it can't be read.

• Can ALPR determine a vehicle ID after there is a hit and run involving a collision with an animal?

• 75% of LA Crime is Fraud, Assault, and Theft. Why do you need assault data from license plate?

• Will residents be able to report things like a stolen vehicle or business report shoplifting and you'll look at ALPR?

• Who has access?

• When historical ALPR data is accessed, what is the average age of that data?
  What is the average time of the

• You don't track law abiding? Then what of the video county?
• You have to have law abiding pictures otherwise you will [couldn't decipher … true naming?]
• Only 7 times, then why have it
  

  LAPD: This was only the accesses in the month of August 2026.

• You used a domestic dispute as an example erlier and said if this was you daughter you would want this behavior disrupted. This sounds dangerously close to predictive policing
• What is your error rate, defined as the system flagging a vehicle that is not the correct target?
• If the photos unintentionally contain other images, such as a pedestrian, how is that handled?
• You are sharing data with Axon, though
  LAPD: No, we control the data. Axon doesn't have access to it.

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to data sharing with federal agencies such as ICE and how data sharing from NCIC and NMCIC works.

• You state that Axon isn't sharing our data, yet the Hot Plate system appears to share data across networks, can you comment on this?
  Does the Los Alamos PD intend to work directly with ICE through AXON to help their efforts?

  LAPD: In SB 40, we are not allowed to share info with ICE, and the data is controlled by us and who we share with on a case by case situation.

• Who creates the agreements to share data between agencies to access ALPR data on an "as needed" basis?
  LAPD: It is an Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with each police department.

• Please expand on data sharing with other jurisdictions
  Is data shared with any orgs in NM, or out of NM?
  What other federal/state agencies have access to data?
  Data sharing with feds, who have become untrustworthy?

   

• Can or is system tied in NCIC & NMCIC wanted vehicles?

• Do you have the feature turned on that allows interagency sharing of data?

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to the policy to retain data for 120 days and how the data retention policy works.

• Why 120 day retention? Why not just until issue is resolved?
  

  Why 120 days not seconds?
  120 days data retention is far too long. Under pressure Flock has reduced it to 7 days. The ACLU argues for 48h.
  LAPD: This matches our required retention timeframe for body-worn camera footage. It is also beyond the 90-day tort claim window.

• What are the guarantees on data retention period and deletion?
  Records and backups deleted after 120 days?
  What does record removal after 120 days mean?
  Is data automatically deleted at 120 days or is that manual?

• How long does your system hold logs for non-felony license plates?

• Can a resident opt out of having their license plate records retained?

• Based on the Axon user manual, data can be exported via csv files. .What is the security and retention of these exported files.

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

These are the questions and comments we received pertaining to ensuring the ALPR system is always used appropriately and all officers are adhering to Policy 206.

• Why isn't anyone outside the LAPD allowed to audit the ALPR use?
• What mechanisms do you have for INDEPENDENT auditing of logs?
• Policy 206 says audits 'should' be conducted rather than shall or must. Given documented cases elsewhere of law-enforcement officers misusing ALPR systems to track individuals for personal reasons, why isn't regular auditing mandatory at a defined frequency, and does Axon automatically flag suspicious searches, or is detecting misuse dependent on someone manually reviewing the audit logs?
• Corporal Weiss started by saying he is the most active user. He is the administrator. He conducts the audits. Question is who's watching Corporal Weiss?
• Which independent, outside agency conducts audits? If none, why not?
• How can citizens get a list of searched plates? Something like "have I been flocked"
• Who audits the auditors?
• How can private citizens audit usage of the system?
• Who watches the auditors.
• What outside oversight is there from beyond LAPD?
• How do citizens or third party auditors access relevant system data?
• Who audits the LAPD/County auditors?
• What makes the audit trail unalterable?
• Audit reports should be shared with the manager or deputy manager monthly
• There has to be external oversight
• Who audits your use? How is it available to the public
• Who's to stop the auditors from abuse? Will they really turn in their Brothers?
• You are able to audit use of data monthly, but how often do you actually audit it? What have you found?
• How often are the audit queries purged? Or, are they retained indefinitely?
• Can I request records of my license plate being recorded and accessed by an officer?
• AUDITS. WILL THERE BE A CITIZEN OVERSITE?
  IF NOT WHY NOT.
  AN ADMINISTATOR SHOULD NOT BE DOING THE AUDITS.  THIS WOULD BE THE POLICE INVESTIGATING THE POLICE.
• On audits. Will there a citizens’ oversite on the audits? If not why not?

Answers to the above questions

• Besides what they shared during the education session, LAPD is currently compiling answers.

Here are comments we received about the meeting.

• Cannot hear questions from the audience.
• CAN NOT HEAR ANY THING FROM THE audience. AT LEAST REPEAT THE QUESTION
• Just making sure I have not been logged out; is the ten minute break still on? - Suzie
• We can’t hear audience
• We can’t hear the person in the audience