The Metro Council doesn’t want license plate readers to be used for immigration enforcement.
The technology takes a picture of each license plate. Then, it’s shared with government agencies to enforce laws.
But state and federal law limits the local body’s power to regulate information sharing from these readers.
Earlier this year, the Metro Council gave the police department the green light to do a six-month pilot on license plate readers. The decision came after months of debate and listening to residents’ fears about the tool being used for surveillance of people of color, as well as what was at stake if the city decided against using them.
In a letter to the council and vice mayor, the police department and Nashville Department of Transportation promised not to use it for immigration enforcement. But Tennessee prevents cities from adopting policies that protect immigrants from deportation, which are often called “sanctuary cities.”
“Both state and federal law, require that local officials, including our council, not interfere with law enforcement reporting or verifying a citizenship status of anybody,” Councilmember Bob Mendes said during this week’s council meeting. He says Nashville could be asked to use the LPR system to verify or report someone’s immigration status.
But in the new law passed this week, the council made it clear they don’t want the police to go above and beyond what’s required.
The ordinance passed 32-1, with council member Robert Swope voting against it.
The police department will also use license plate readers to prosecute violent crimes, assist in missing person cases and catch traffic violations.
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