Police Use More Car‑Plate Cameras in Montgomery County

The county police have rolled out almost 800 cameras that read license plates, recording more than 93 million scans in 2024—up from about 52 million the year before. By next year, officials expect to reach around 110 million reads. The new devices do more than just capture numbers; they can note a car’s make, color, stickers and even temporary tags, which helps track vehicles when plates are missing or altered. Investigators say the technology has helped solve car‑theft cases and track repeat offenders. In one case, a suspect’s vehicle was followed from Maryland to Virginia after a shooting; the driver was later arrested in Charlottesville and sent back to Maryland. The county executive praised the cameras for stopping crimes before they happen, pointing out that a vehicle flagged as stolen can be identified as it enters the county.Montgomery County also operates over 2, 000 community cameras that aid searches for stolen cars and missing people. Police claim these tools have produced millions of useful leads this year, especially as auto‑theft incidents rise. However, privacy advocates argue that the cameras collect detailed travel histories and raise questions about how long data is kept and who can access it. They worry that ordinary drivers might be monitored without knowing it.