A coalition of civil rights groups filed a class action lawsuit on Tuesday against Westchester County, New York, demanding a halt to its deployment of nearly 600 license plate reader cameras. The lawsuit alleges the system constitutes warrantless and indiscriminate surveillance violating the state constitution. The network has collected 1.6 billion plate scans and shared data with over 50 law enforcement agencies, including U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to fortune.com.
The complaint claims Westchester County never obtained proper authorization before launching the program, which tracks long-term travel patterns and daily habits of millions of motorists. Barry Friedman, founder and faculty director of the Policing Project at NYU School of Law, which brought the suit on behalf of four motorists, said the surveillance lacks legislative approval, accountability, transparency, and oversight. A county spokesperson stated Westchester has not yet reviewed the lawsuit, per fortune.com.
License plate reader systems use cameras to scan and record license plate information, raising privacy concerns nationwide. The lawsuit highlights the potential for mass data collection on law-abiding citizens without judicial oversight. Sharing data with agencies like ICE intensifies the controversy, as similar surveillance programs have faced scrutiny for civil liberties implications. This case adds to ongoing debates about balancing law enforcement tools and individual privacy rights in the United States, according to fortune.com.
The lawsuit seeks a court order to stop Westchester County’s license plate reader program. The Policing Project at NYU School of Law filed the suit on June 9, representing four motorists challenging the surveillance network’s legality, fortune.com reported.