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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dedham, MA - April 11, 2007
Massachusetts Criminal Defense Attorney Warns of
Ignoring Old Criminal Warrants With the Advent of New Police License
Plate Scanning Technologies
New police video camera technology able to scan license plates
makes it simple for police to identify vehicles and drivers with
outstanding warrants, suspended licenses, registrations or other
charges. A police cruiser with a mounted video camera and a computer
can now instantly flag suspects who drive within range of one of
these systems.
The technology is called ALPR, or Automatic License Plate
Recognition. It combines advanced video optical character scanning
technology with law enforcement and registry databases. A police
vehicle with this system installed can scan thousands of plates per
hour while driving or sitting by the road.
According to Attorney Elliot Savitz, a Massachusetts attorney who
concentrates his practice in criminal defense, “If you’ve got any
kind of outstanding criminal warrant or suspended license, you are
taking a huge gamble by simply driving your car.” He regularly
represents people dealing with charges from old warrants and
probation violations. He added, “Since 9/11 and the advent of the
Patriot Act, decades old criminal warrants are now showing up in
databases and are shared across the spectrum of local, state, and
federal law enforcement agencies.”
It’s always a mistake to ignore or avoid unresolved criminal
matters and now it is more risky then ever. “In the past, I’ve
always urged anyone with an outstanding criminal warrant to address
it as soon as possible, because if they are ever stopped by the
police for speeding, they would be instantly arrested” said Savitz.
Adding, “But now just driving down the road can get you arrested.”
According to Attorney Savitz, proactively dealing with an old
warrant will avoid big problems in the future. “Frequently, I can
recall the warrant and dispose of the case without the Defendant
present. With old criminal cases, often evidence and witnesses are
no longer available, and I can get those cases completely
dismissed”.
ALPR is being used regularly in California, primarily to identify
stolen vehicles on the road, and is being quickly adopted by police
departments across the country.
Elliot Savitz is a Massachusetts Criminal Defense Attorney,
with offices in Dedham and Brockton, MA. He offers a free criminal
consultation to anyone facing a criminal charge. His web site is
http://www.masscriminaldefense.com and his phone number is
(781)326-2700.
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