RI police cite crime‑solving wins in plate-reading camera expansion

The Rhode Island State Police are in the middle of a months-long push to launch a network of 39 license-plate reading camera devices like the ones that helped investigators identify a mass shooter in December.

The project is working to finalize locations for the devices in 22 Rhode Island cities and towns, according to the trooper leading the project, state police Detective Capt. Marc A. Alboum.

While locations for the devices are not finalized, the project anticipates placement of plate-reading cameras on highways and key arteries across the state.

Alboum said most of the local officials have given an initial approval and he awaits feedback from Portsmouth and Bristol.

The second part of the process involves gathering input from police in those cities and towns, which could lead to adjustments to the proposed locations.

Reading license plates in fast-moving traffic

In part, the plans call for the plate-reading devices in certain cities and towns where traffic moves between Rhode Island and other states.

On that front, Alboum said, the current proposal envisions:

• Two devices aimed at traffic in both directions on Interstate 195 in East Providence, which borders Seekonk
• Two devices aimed at Interstate 295 traffic in Cumberland, which borders North Attleboro
• Two devices aimed at Interstate 95 traffic in Pawtucket, which borders Attleboro
• A device aimed at Interstate 95 further to the south in Richmond

The plans also anticipate two camera devices in Cranston, one in East Greenwich, one in Richmond, two in Johnston, where traffic moves between Interstate 295 and Route 5.

State police are pursuing four devices in Providence, including on Route 10, Route 146 and Interstate 95, and at least one device in a more rural location on Route 165 in Exeter.

State police outreach to cities and towns

Alboum said his outreach to town and city officials for approval is in response to guidance from the company that was chosen to supply the license plate-reading system.

That company, Flock Safety, already provides license plate-reading capabilities to many Rhode Island cities and towns.

Alboum said he has initial approvals from 20 cities and towns and as of Jan. 9.

Have any towns denied the request to install Flock cameras?

The Warren Town Council rejected the proposal. Opponents of the systems, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island, have argued that the technology supports excessive surveillance by police and infringes on privacy.

Noting that private surveillance cameras are everywhere already, proponents of license plate reading devices say the systems provide a valuable public safety service that checks on the plates of passing motor vehicles and notifies police when one of those vehicles has been flagged.

For example, a car might be associated with a person wanted on a warrant or someone who is a missing person. Or the vehicle itself might be stolen. In those situations, the resulting Flock “hit” can alert police stop the car and investigate if they move quickly enough.

The plate data that does not trigger a flag resides in the system for 30 days, and access to that data is sufficiently controlled and regulated, supporters say. Only investigators with special clearances can run searches.

How data from plate reading system helped police find mass shooter

After the mass shooting at Brown University in December, when investigators became interested in a Nissan with a Florida plate, they ran searches within Providence’s license plate reading system.

Eventually, they identified a blue Nissan with a Florida plate that a Flock device detected near Whole Foods in Providence.

Information on the car’s plate then helped investigators determine that someone who fit the profile of the suspected mass shooter, Claudio Neves Valente, had rented the vehicle, authorities say.

The vehicle itself had not triggered a Flock hit when it passed through. Investigators had to search for it within the Flock system after they became interested in that type of car.

Plate data that flows into the cameras proposed by state police will be “permanently deleted” after 30 days, according to police.

Are Flock cameras used to give speeding tickets?

The devices do not measure speed, Alboum said.

The plate information and other data, which can include a particular sticker or a roof rack, is protected through encryption before it is transmitted to servers, he said, adding that the devices do not have any public internet protocol (IP) address that would facilitate remote access.

The devices are “aligned with the security protocols established by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Cybersecurity as well as the Cloud Security Alliance’s (CAIQ) framework,” he said.

Alboum said that the project is grant-funded and the state has negotiated a three-year contract with Flock for $597,000.

He estimated that state police are at least three months away from operating the system, emphasizing that the process has gone more slowly than he expected.

The Cranston police, under the leadership of Col. Michael J. Winquist, were the first Rhode Island police agency to test the devices through a pilot program. Cranston, Pawtucket and Woonsocket launched license-plate reading networks in 2021.

The systems have factored in the prompt capture of suspects accused of involvement in violent crimes.

“We’ve had nothing but great success in not only preventing crime but solving crimes after they occur in our city,” said Winquist who was expected to make an appearance before the Bristol Town Council.

Alboum cites a recent situation where state police tracked down a vehicle associated with an armed robbery.

“It’s a priceless tool,” he says. “It really is.”