FW: Please update Benicia's ALPR Policy
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10/6/2025 3:56:04 PM
Sent:
From: Edward Criado <ECriado@ci.benicia.ca.us
To: "Wendy Stratton"
Cc:
Bcc:
Importance: Normal
Subject: FW: Please update Benicia's ALPR Policy
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,ALPR_policy_2025.pdf
Edward Criad
o
Deputy Police Chief
Police Department
O: 707-746-4259
ECriado@ci.benicia.ca.us
www.ci.benicia.ca.us/police
From: Edward Criado <ECriado@ci.benicia.ca.us>
Sent: Monday, October 6, 2025 1:59 PM
To: Mark Menesini <MMenesini@ci.benicia.ca.us>
Cc: Wendy Stratton Monahan <WMonahan@ci.benicia.ca.us>; Jake Heinemeyer <JHeinemeyer@ci.benicia.ca.us>
Subject: FW: Please update Benicia’s ALPR Policy
FYI – Lionel sent this to me.
Edward Criad
o
Deputy Police Chief
Police Department
O: 707-746-4259
ECriado@ci.benicia.ca.us
www.ci.benicia.ca.us/police
From: Lionel Largaespada <LLargaespada@ci.benicia.ca.us>
Sent: Monday, October 6, 2025 12:53 PM
To: [email redacted]
Subject: Re: Please update Benicia’s ALPR Policy
Hi [name redacted],
Thanks for these questions.
The Benicia Police Department’s ALPR Policy (Policy 470) is attached and available on the City of Benicia’s website
here: https://www.ci.benicia.ca.us/index.asp?SEC=68826789-63C6-4FAF-A4C2-04FB539FE803&DE=ED828606-AC77-
47E9-97AC-7546BDB48514.
The policy covers all of the areas you’ve asked about.
It authorizes ALPR technology only for reading and comparing license plates and does not permit any kind of
predictive, biometric, or AI-based surveillance of people or behavior (Sections 470.1 and 470.4).
It also prohibits sharing data with ICE or CBP under the California Values Act (Sections 470.7 and 470.9), requires
supervisory approval and written documentation for any other data sharing (470.9), mandates quarterly audits by
the Services Lieutenant or the Chief’s designee (470.8), and makes the policy publicly available with penalties for
misuse (470.3.1 and 470.4).
The Council receives regular updates from the Chief, and the City Manager and Chief set the timing for when audit
summaries or policy updates are shared publicly. It’s usually as quickly as possible.
I appreciate your advocacy and the time you’ve taken to review the policy. The City’s ALPR policy already includes the
safeguards you’ve asked about, and I’m confident it will continue to strike the right balance between privacy,
accountability, and public safety.
Sincerely,
Lionel
Lionel Largaespada
Council Member
Elected Official
O: 707-746-4213 | C: 415-377-XXXX
LLargaespada@ci.benicia.ca.us
www.ci.benicia.ca.us
City Hall is closed on alternating Fridays. Learn more about closures here.
From: [name redacted] <[email redacted]>
Sent: Sunday, October 5, 2025 11:29 AM
To: Lionel Largaespada <LLargaespada@ci.benicia.ca.us>
Subject: Re: Please update Benicia’s ALPR Policy
Caution: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or
open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Lionel,
Thank you so
much for your quick reply.
I have a few questions I hope you can answer.
Does the existing ALPR policy have specific language written that “does not permit predictive or
AI surveillance of people or behavior”?
Please share the link to the ALPR Policy.
Are the “quarterly audits of ALPR use”, including “results documented and reviewed by the
Chief of Police”, made available for the Mayor and City Council members to review? Will these
results be presented at a City Council meeting?
Thank you for your time,
[name redacted]
On Fri, Oct 3, 2025 at 11:24 AM Lionel Largaespada <LLargaespada@ci.benicia.ca.us> wrote:
Hi [name redacted],
Thank you for writing me with your concerns. I want to reassure you that our existing ALPR policy already
addresses what you’ve requested.
The policy only authorizes ALPR technology to capture license plates and does not permit predictive or AI
surveillance of people or behavior. It explicitly prohibits sharing data with ICE and CBP under the California Values
Act, and restricts any other data sharing to legitimate law enforcement purposes with supervisory oversight. By
law, the Services Lieutenant conducts quarterly audits of ALPR use, with results documented and reviewed by the
Chief of Police. The policy is posted publicly on the department’s website, and violations carry administrative, civil,
or even criminal penalties.
Thanks again for writing. The measures you suggested are already addressed under our existing policy.
Sincerely,
Lionel
Lionel Largaespada
Council Member
Elected Official
O: 707-746-4213 | C: 415-377-XXXX
LLargaespada@ci.benicia.ca.us
www.ci.benicia.ca.us
City Hall is closed on alternating Fridays. Learn more about closures here.
From: [name redacted] <[email redacted]>
Sent: Friday, October 3, 2025 10:50 AM
To: Steve Young <SYoung@ci.benicia.ca.us>; Trevor Macenski <TMacenski@ci.benicia.ca.us>; Kari Birdseye
<KBirdseye@ci.benicia.ca.us>; Lionel Largaespada <LLargaespada@ci.benicia.ca.us>; Terry Scott <TScott@ci.benicia.ca.us>
Subject: Please update Benicia’s ALPR Policy
Caution: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or
open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe. Dear Mayor
Young and
Benicia City Council Members,
I respectfully urge the Council to update Benicia’s Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR)
Policy to ensure stronger community protections.
Specifically, I ask that you consider amendments to:
- Prohibit the deployment of AI surveillance technologies in Benicia;
- Prevent the sharing of license plate data with federal agencies unless explicitly approved
by the City Council;
- Strengthen and increase the transparency of system audits, including making audit results
publicly available;
- Require that updates to the ALPR policy include City Council approval.
Thank you for your leadership and for your continued commitment to protecting the privacy
and safety of Benicia residents.
[name redacted]