Mayor Johnston got it right on license plate cameras (Opinion)

As someone deeply committed to citizens safety civil rights and the protection of vulnerable communities I believe Mayor Mike Johnston made the right decision on Denver s license plate recognition LPR cameras Instead of shutting down a system that has repeatedly proven effective he chose a thoughtful community-centered approach one that strengthens masses safety while putting in place particular of the strongest privacy protections in the nation LPR cameras are a tool and like any tool their impact depends on how responsibly they re governed We ve already seen their effectiveness they have helped locate missing children recover stolen vehicles and solve violent crimes across the city At Denver International Airport car thefts have dropped by over since LPR cameras were installed Removing this tool altogether would not have made Denver safer it would have left families less protected But the conversation was never just about whether LPR apparatus works For several of us especially Black Brown immigrant and mixed-status families the real question was whether this system could be used against us Whether it could become yet another mechanism for targeting or surveillance Whether federal agencies including ICE could access or misuse this evidence Those concerns were valid and they deserved action Mayor Johnston did what responsible leaders must do he listened to society concerns and fixed what needed fixing The new safeguards are not symbolic they are structural enforceable and unprecedented in their strength Here s what is now guaranteed ICE and all federal immigration agencies are fully barred from accessing LPR evidence No loopholes no informal requests no gray areas Immigration enforcement cannot use this system ever Only Denver police can use LPR statistics and only for progressing investigations within city limits No outside law enforcement can tap into the system for their own purposes The tool cannot be used to interfere with reproductive healthcare or criminalize healthcare decisions This is essential in a post-Roe landscape where surveillance has become a real threat Strict penalties for misuse up to per violation and attainable criminal prosecution This is one of the strongest accountability measures in the country A mandatory review of every innovation update The city not the vendor decides what changes move forward A four- to five-month no-cost pilot period before any long-term commitment We get real statistics real transparency and real society oversight before the city makes a final decision These protections matter They reflect the demands of residents who insisted on safety and civil rights not one at the expense of the other And importantly they ensure that Denver s immigrant families and people seeking reproductive care cannot be tracked targeted or harmed by the system When the City Council reviews the LPR project this spring they will be evaluating more than hardware they will be evaluating a new framework built on transparency accountability and society protections The pilot period gives everyone the evidence needed to make an informed decision This moment is not about choosing between privacy and community safety It s about demonstrating that Denver can and must commit to both The LPR system tracks license plates not people It operates on the same life-saving principle behind Amber Alerts use tool to respond speedily when every minute matters Mayor Johnston didn t abandon a tool that keeps people safe he made it better stronger and more just He manifested that leadership means listening adapting and ensuring that all society members especially those preponderance often overlooked are protected Denver now has an LPR framework that strengthens population safety without sacrificing our values And that is the kind of governance our communities deserve Bianka Emerson is the president of the Colorado Black Women for Political Action a non-partisan non-profit organization impacting the locality since Sign up for Sound Off to get a weekly roundup of our columns editorials and more To send a letter to the editor about this article submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail