Laurel Police pilot license-plate reader camera, adds drones; city approved $89,000 purchase

The Laurel Police Department is conducting a 60-day trial with Axon of a mounted camera that includes live-streaming and license-plate reading along a busy stretch of US Route 1 near Maryland Route 198. Captain Steve Ivory explained that captured plates are compared against a downloaded "hot list" of wanted tags and will alert dispatch when matches occur.

Captain Ivory said the department also added two aerial drones, bringing its fleet to four, and described drones getting to scenes ahead of officers in about 70% of calls: "The drone in 70% of the calls is getting to the call before the officers do, so it gives us an advanced look." Officials said the city council approved the technology purchase in July at a cost of more than $89,000.

Ivory addressed data controls and access restrictions, saying access to the license-plate data is tightly controlled: "There's only 2 people in this entire agency, and I'm 1 of them." The department characterized the tools as intended to help locate stolen or wanted vehicles and support investigations into crimes such as retail theft.