Mount Prospect License-Plate Reader Data Shared Illegally With Texas Police: Secretary Of State

MOUNT PROSPECT, IL — Last month, law enforcement authorities in Texas illegally accessed Illinois automatic license plate reader data to track down a woman for an abortion care-related matter. Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias said Thursday cameras in Mount Prospect, specifically, were used by the Johnson County Sheriff's Department in the search.

Texas police performed a nationwide search of more than 83,000 ALPR cameras to locate a woman they said had a self-administered abortion. Included in the search were cameras located in states where abortion is legal, according to Giannoulias.

"License plate readers can serve as an important tool for law enforcement, but these cameras must be regulated so they aren’t abused for surveillance, tracking the data of innocent people or criminalizing lawful behavior," Giannoulias said. "No one seeking legal healthcare services in Illinois should face harassment or jail – period."

The Mount Prospect Police Department responded to the investigation, stating the use of ALPR data collected by its flock safety cameras for this purpose "does not align with the department's values and is a clear violation of Illinois state law."

MPPD said the investigation revealed other law enforcement agencies conducted 262 immigration-related searches on Mount Prospect's ALPR data between Jan. 14 and April 30.

"It is likely other Illinois communities with Flock cameras would show similar searches of their local cameras if audited," police said.

In 2023, Giannoulias spearheaded first-in-the-nation legislation making it illegal for law enforcement in other states to use ALPR cameras to track or penalize individuals seeking abortion care or criminalize a person’s immigration status.

"I am tremendously upset that some law enforcement agencies who agreed to follow Illinois law, in order to gain access to our ALPR data, conducted illegal searches violating the trust of our community," Mount Prospect Police Chief Michael Eterno said. "As disappointed as I am with these other agencies, I want to emphasize that no member of the Mount Prospect Police Department shared ALPR data in violation of the law."

After having learned the information from the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office, the Mount Prospect Police Department said it took immediate steps to mitigate and prevent this from occurring again. MPPD has taken the following preventative measures:

• MPPD opted out of the Flock Safety "National Lookup" feature
• MPPD cancelled any data sharing agreement with law enforcement agencies who violated Illinois state law.
• MPPD revoked access to Mount Prospect's ALPR data for all law enforcement agencies outside of Illinois.
• MPPD will be updating its ALPR policy to include regular audits of the searches being conducted by internal and external users.