The City of Albuquerque had a 42 percent increase in auto theft (subscription) in the first seven months of the year. That’s cause for alarm, and it reflects negatively on Mayor Martin Chavez. However, one of the proposed solutions is just beyond creepy:
Having the police department purchase computerized license plate readers. The devices can be placed at different places in town to read plates as cars pass by. A nearby officer is alerted if the device reads a plate from a car that has been reported stolen.
First, there were a few cameras at intersections to stop people from running red lights. Now, they want to put computerized license plate readers all around town to monitor every car as it goes past. At what point do we say enough is enough?