"Inside he found a hidden camera feeding a vast surveillance network that logs the license plate of every driver passing through this stretch of remote backcountry between San Diego and the Arizona state line. Cordero, 44, has found dozens of these cameras hidden in trailers and construction barrels on border roads around San Diego and Imperial counties."
"They started showing up after California granted permits to the Border Patrol and other federal agencies to place license plate readers on state highways in the last months of the Biden administration. Now as many as 40 are feeding information into Trump administration databases as the Democratic-led state chafes over the federal government's massive deportation program."
"The cameras are raising concerns with privacy experts, civil liberties advocates and humanitarian aid workers who say California should not be supporting the surveillance and data-collection program, which they view as an unwarranted government intrusion into the lives of Americans who've committed no crime. Moreover, they say the program conflicts with state law."
"Supporters say the devices allow law enforcement to quickly identify and locate people they suspect of serious crimes. They also argue the cameras help agencies spot patterns in drug and human trafficking, and could be used to help locate missing persons, such as children or other vulnerable people."
Hidden license plate reader cameras have been discovered on remote roads in San Diego and Imperial counties, installed by Border Patrol and federal agencies following permits granted in the final months of the Biden administration. As many as 40 cameras now feed data into Trump administration databases, tracking every vehicle passing through border regions. Privacy advocates, civil liberties groups, and humanitarian workers oppose the program, arguing it constitutes unwarranted surveillance of citizens who have committed no crimes and conflicts with California law. Law enforcement supporters contend the cameras help identify suspects in serious crimes, detect trafficking patterns, and locate missing persons. The surveillance network has sparked significant debate between the Democratic-led state and federal government over privacy rights and appropriate use of monitoring technology.
#license-plate-readers #border-surveillance #privacy-rights #federal-state-conflict #immigration-enforcement
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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