(HURON COUNTY, ON) – Huron County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) is crediting the advanced computer aided technology known as Automatic Licence Plate Recognition (ALPR) with putting the brakes on two suspended drivers this past weekend.
The ALPR system is a sophisticated licence plate scanning tool that captures an image of both the front and rear licence plates on passing vehicles. The system is capable of scanning thousands of plates per hour, checking them in real time against the Ministry of Transportation (MTO) database.
As the officer patrols down the highway the ALPR system is furiously scanning every plate that passes by the specially equipped cruiser. The system can instantaneously identify stolen plates, expired validation stickers, plates associated to suspended and unlicenced drivers, wanted persons, missing persons and those connected to Amber Alerts. Once a “hit” is identified by the ALPR system, an audible alert will sound and the officer will follow through with an investigative traffic stop.
This scenario played out several times this past weekend. One such stop occurred on Friday, July 18, 2015 just after 3:00 p.m.. A Huron OPP officer was patrolling on Dashwood Road in Dashwood when a westbound Ford Ranger passed by the ALPR cruiser. A “hit” was identified by the ALPR because the licence plate on the truck was associated to a pickup truck that was stolen in 2014. A traffic stop ensued and upon further investigation the officer determined the driver held a suspended driver’s licence. The driver was placed under arrest and a search incident to arrest revealed the driver to be in possession of marihuana and a switchblade knife.
Further investigation revealed the vehicle wasn’t stolen however the licence plate was and it wasn’t authorized to be on the pickup. Additionally, the vehicle was not insured. As a result, the 21-year-old driver from London, Justin MCKENZIE, is facing charges of Possession of Stolen Property, Possession of a Schedule II Substance – (Cannabis Marihuana), Occupy Motor Vehicle with a Prohibited Weapon, Two Counts of Drive While Under Suspension, Operate Motor Vehicle – Fail to Have Insurance and Use Plates Unauthorized for Vehicle. He was released from custody with a court appearance scheduled for August 27, 2015 at the Ontario Court of Justice – Exeter.
The next day around 6:30 p.m., a Huron OPP officer operating the ALPR cruiser was alerted to a “hit” for a licence plate in the database that was registered to a suspended driver. The officer stopped the 4-door Chevrolet and spoke with the driver. It was confirmed the female driver was in fact suspended and she was also found to be not complying with a condition of her probation sentence. She was in the company of a passenger she was not allowed to associate with. As a result, 20-year-old Lindsey MCPHERSON from Stratford was charged with Fail to Comply with Probation Order, Drive While Under Suspension, Fail to Surrender Insurance Card and Fail to Surrender Permit for Vehicle. She was released from custody with a court appearance scheduled for August 27, 2015 at the Ontario Court of Justice – Exeter.
Huron OPP officers continue to utilize the ALPR equipped cruiser on a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week basis when in Huron County. The specially equipped cruiser is in very high demand; as such it is a shared resource with the neigbhouring counties.
“The ALPR equipped cruiser is a great tool for our frontline officers. The system is very user-friendly and the results have been more than expected. This system allows our officers to detect those suspended drivers and other drivers that try to circumvent the law. Ensuring Huron County roadways remain as safe as possible is a top priority for our detachment members and this tool is certainly helping us.”