How License Plate Cameras helped Tulsa Police achieve 100% Homicide solve rate in 2024

Several police departments across Green Country report that license plate-reading cameras have significantly improved their ability to prevent and solve crimes.

The Tulsa Police Department says the devices have delivered immediate results since their implementation.

What Are License Plate-Reading Cameras?

License plate-reading cameras, used by law enforcement agencies and some homeowner associations, capture plate information that is shared with law enforcement nationwide.

“These cameras don’t give us access to people’s driving records or vehicle owner information,” said Capt. Mike Sole of the Sapulpa Police Department.

“We don’t make arrests based on these photos alone. It takes a lot of corroborative information,” added Lt. Brandon Watkins of the Tulsa Police Department. “All the photos really do is help us pinpoint a vehicle rather than look at every single person who owns that type of vehicle across the area.”

Watkins said the department retains photos for only a limited time. “This technology allows us to identify a vehicle very quickly and gets us on the right track faster than any method we’ve ever had,” he said.

How Have License Plate Cameras Helped Police?

Nearly two years after implementing the cameras, Tulsa Police say the devices have been instrumental in solving 100% of homicides in 2024.

Sapulpa Police, which began using the cameras a few months ago, have also seen success. Capt. Sole said the cameras helped locate a woman charged with murdering her newborn baby.

“She drove past one of our Flock cameras in Sapulpa, and officers were immediately notified. They were able to locate her, stop the vehicle, and place her under arrest for the murder warrant,” Sole said.

While the Tulsa Police Department started talking about using license plate reading cameras in 2023, Brandon Watkins says he saw immediate results when the homicide unit was looking for a murder suspect who stole the victim's car.

"He drove down to Texas and drove one of the license plate camera readers in Texas that morning, and we had him in custody, honestly as we started putting them in, we started seeing a difference," said Lt. Watkins. 

What Are the Privacy Concerns?

Oklahoma State Rep. Tom Gann opposes license plate-reading cameras, citing concerns over personal privacy and the potential for misuse to track people’s movements.

Gann led a study on the use of the cameras before the House State Powers Committee last October. That study can be viewed HERE.