George Orwell, call the front desk.
Police in Ohio are now using license plate scanners to nab auto thieves entering the state at the Pennsylvania and Indiana borders. The scanners, which are mounted at toll areas, can read the new bar codes found on many states' plateage, including those from Ohio, Indiana, New York, and Iowa. Information is then compared to a list of vehicles reported stolen or registered to individuals with outstanding warrants. Civil liberties watchdogs need not worry, however. Unlike a similar system in Italy, which collects and retains all vehicles' license plate data, the Ohio system tosses out license information on vehicles without a crime-related record.
Vindy.com (Youngstown, OH)
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