KALAMAZOO, MI (WKZO AM/FM) – When faced with complaints about officers wearing masks, Kalamazoo Public Safety immediately changed their policy and ended the practice this summer.
New complains about roadside license plate readers being used to track illegal immigrants won’t need a response. The department has already acted.
Two residents recently told city commissioners they fear the surveillance system might be employed by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement or by the Trump administration to track opponents.
They called on the city to shut them down.
Public safety now says when they learned that the local data may have been used to do a nationwide track for an immigration suspect, they ceased operation in the national system back in June,
Now they only allow area police agencies to tap into the data and only for the intended purpose, to track stolen cars and vehicles used in crimes.
Here is KDPS’ policy on the cameras: “KDPS has strict guidelines on the use of License Plate Readers (LPRs) and our staff is not permitted to use LPRs for the purpose of locating subjects with immigration violations and warrants.”
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