Proposal to install license plate readers at schools goes before Fulton County board

FULTON COUNTY, Ga. - Those wanted for a major crime would do well about not hang around Fulton County Public Schools. The Fulton County Board of Education on Thursday will vote on a proposal to install license-plate readers at all of its 106 schools. District leaders said the cameras would improve security in the wake of shootings at schools around the nation.

"It’s going to be at the entrance way of all of our school campuses," said Superintendent Mike Looney. "They read the license plates of vehicles as they come on campus."

Looney said the cameras would only flag stolen cars, vehicles suspected of involvement in crimes and people convicted of major crimes.

"Sex offenders, parents who’ve been banned from campus, and even students who’ve been expelled from Fulton County Public Schools," Looney said.

The district would send that data to police.

"We will get immediate notification if someone is driving a vehicle on campus that is owned by someone with a significant criminal history that’s problematic for our schools. It will go straight to law enforcement," Looney said.

Looney insisted the information would be encrypted. He insists the district won’t share the data with third parties other than police. He also said the district would get rid the video after 30-days.

"It will be deleted on a regular basis. The information will not be store unless there’s an incident and we have to retrieve it," Looney said.

Parents like Christina Ryals give the proposal the green light.

"It’s a great idea," Ryals said. "If something happens, I would rather them be able to tell who came into school that day."

Ryals’s daughter attends North Springs High Schools in Sandy Springs. She believes the proposal would deter crooks who shouldn’t be at schools in the first place.

"If you’re driving through the school and you have things to hide, you probably shouldn’t be in the area," she said.

Flock Group Inc. would install the cameras. They would cost the district $626,000. The district would install the cameras in January if approved.