Crime & Safety
Novato Cops Tap Into Tech to Find Stolen Car
An Automated License Plate Reader mounted on a patrol car spotted a vehicle confirmed stolen out of Oakland.
Novato Police on Thursday tapped into 21st Century technology to locate a stolen car.
An Automated License Plate Reader installed on a patrol car alerted an officer of a stolen vehicle on the 1000 block of Fourth Street at about 9:21 p.m.
The 1996 Nissan Sentra was confirmed stolen from Oakland and processed for evidence.
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The police car camera, which resembles the head of the lead character in the 2008 film "WALL-E," focuses on cars' license plates and instantly alerts officers if a car is stolen or associated with criminal arrest warrants or registration violations.
The system uses software that recognizes the shapes and locations of license plates, and enters the letters and numbers into a database containing thousands of plate numbers, Novato police Lt. J. Demski said. An alert sounds if a car comes up as stolen.
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Novato police have installed the cameras on three patrol cars, and the Marin County Sheriff's Department and Tiburon and Mill Valley police departments are also using the technology.
Bay City News contributed to this report.
