Policy Text
Policy
427CSU Police Department
Systemwide Policy Manual
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2025/08/10, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by CSU Police DepartmentAutomated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) - 1Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs)
427.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE
The purpose of this policy is to provide guidance for the capture, storage, access, and use of
digital license plate data obtained through Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) technology.
427.2 POLICY
The policy of the CSU Police Department is to utilize ALPR technology to capture and store digital
license plate data and images while recognizing the established privacy rights of the public. Digital
license plate data refers to any data, image, vehicle information, location information, date/time
information, or other relevant information captured by an ALPR system and retained in a database.
All data and images gathered by the ALPR are for the official use of this department. Furthermore,
all access to, and retention of digital license plate data shall only be conducted on a need to
know, right to know basis by an authorized user. Because such data may contain confidential
information, it is not open to public review.
427.3 ADMINISTRATION
The ALPR technology, also known as License Plate Recognition (LPR), allows for the automated
detection of license plates. It is used by the CSU Police Department to convert data associated
with vehicle license plates for official law enforcement purposes, including preventing, solving,
and mitigating criminal acts and threats to public safety, as well as identifying stolen or wanted
vehicles, stolen license plates and missing persons, victims and witnesses. It may also be used
to gather information related to active warrants, suspect interdiction, stolen property recovery and
community safety and security (e.g. development of investigative leads, protect participants at
special events, protect critical infrastructure sites, etc.).
All installation and maintenance of ALPR equipment, as well as ALPR data retention and access,
shall be managed by the Chief of Police or designee. The Chief of Police or designee will assign
members of the Department to administer the day-to-day operation of the ALPR equipment and
data.
427.3.1 ALPR ADMINISTRATOR
The Chief of Police or designee shall be responsible for developing guidelines and procedures to
comply with the requirements of Civil Code § 1798.90.5 et seq. This includes, but is not limited to
(Civil Code § 1798.90.51; Civil Code § 1798.90.53):
(a)A description of the job title or other designation of the members and independent
contractors who are authorized to use or access the ALPR system or to collect ALPR
information.
(b)Training requirements for authorized users.
(c)A description of how the ALPR system will be monitored to ensure the security of the
information and compliance with applicable privacy laws.
CSU Police Department
Systemwide Policy Manual
Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs)
Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2025/08/10, All Rights Reserved.
Published with permission by CSU Police DepartmentAutomated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) - 2(d)Procedures for system operators to maintain records of access in compliance with
Civil Code § 1798.90.52.
(e)The title and name of the current designee in overseeing the ALPR operation.
(f)Working with the Custodian of Records on the retention and destruction of ALPR data.
(g)Ensuring this policy and related procedures are conspicuously posted on the
department's website.
427.4 OPERATIONS
Use of an ALPR is restricted to the purposes outlined below. Department members shall not use,
or allow others to use the equipment or database records for any unauthorized purpose (Civil
Code § 1798.90.51; Civil Code § 1798.90.53).
(a)An ALPR shall only be used for official law enforcement business.
(b)An ALPR may be used in conjunction with any routine patrol operation or criminal
investigation. Reasonable suspicion or probable cause is not required before using
an ALPR.
(c)While an ALPR may be used to canvass license plates around any crime scene,
particular consideration should be given to using ALPR-equipped cars to canvass
areas around homicides, shootings and other major incidents. Partial license plates
reported during major crimes should be entered into the ALPR system in an attempt
to identify suspect vehicles.
(d)No member of this department shall operate ALPR equipment or access ALPR data
without first completing department-approved training.
(e)No ALPR operator may access department, state or federal data unless otherwise
authorized to do so.
(f)If practicable, the officer should verify an ALPR response to confirm the vehicle or
subject's identity and justification for contact through the California Law Enforcement
Telecommunications System (CLETS) before taking enforcement action that is based
solely on an ALPR alert.
(g)Operators must recognize that the data collected from ALPR devices consists of data
that may or may not be accurate, despite ongoing efforts to maximize the accuracy
of such data.
427.5 DATA COLLECTION AND RETENTION
The Chief of Police or designee is responsible for ensuring systems and processes are in place
for the proper collection and retention of ALPR data. Data will be transferred from vehicles to the
designated storage in accordance with department procedures.
All ALPR data downloaded to the server should be stored for a minimum of one year
(Government Code § 34090.6) and in accordance with the established records retention
schedule. Thereafter, ALPR data should be purged unless it has become, or it