KEARNS, Utah — The Unified Police Department removed its automated license plate readers in Kearns after public backlash.
“The reason we took them down had to do with the amount of public outcry prompting people to go and damage them,” said Kearns precinct chief Levi Hughes.
The department said the cameras helped officers find stolen cars and respond to missing-person cases.
"All of those things that we do to help protect and find people, this is the system that we heavily rely upon across the country,” Hughes said. "This is a huge loss for us."
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Kearns resident Maria Hernandez said she worries about what could be lost without the cameras, especially in situations involving kids.
“If any of those situations became a kidnap, someone got hurt, those cameras become important,” Hernandez, a mother of 7, said. “If we have no tracing, what car plate took my child, hurt my child, then what?"
Hughes noted that privacy is a major concern for people.
“This camera photographs a license plate. It will get a picture of the car, of course, but it doesn’t have this zoom-in technology to even know who was driving the car,” Hughes explained.
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Hughes said he's noticing the differences since taking down the cameras.
“Almost daily our officers were getting alerts on vehicles that were being sought after,” Hughes said. “Now, we don’t get them.”
He said the cameras will remain down while police wait to see whether lawmakers make changes before deciding whether to reinstall them.
“Every tool helps as minimal as it can be, and this one is an important one,” Hernandez said.