LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) – The Lincoln Police Department announced it will use a new tool to spot vehicles of interest to police.

Lincoln Police Chief Michon Morrow announced Friday that ALPRs (automatic license plate readers) are now operational after seven months of testing. The readers, part of new onboard cameras installed on 20 cruisers, use software to read license plates during patrols.

The software identifies license plate numbers and cross-references them with the LPD database. If it spots a license plate involved in a potential crime, the software will alert the officer in the vehicle.

During the seven-month trial, officers used the tool as part of a homicide investigation, recovering 30 stolen vehicles and returning $180,000 in stolen property.

Photos taken from the camera will only be kept for 180 days unless they are needed in ongoing investigations, Morrow said.

The Lincoln Police Department has now joined several agencies across the state in implementing the cameras and software.

Morrow noted that plate readers were not foolproof. The only error they encountered was the software incorrectly identifying the status on a license plate if it was obscured by mud or other substances. Lincoln Police stressed that officers will need to double-check what their readers captured during any investigation.

The seven-month trial lasted between March 15 and October 15, and the cameras are now in full use.

On the money side, they cost $208 per vehicle per month.

If you want to know more about plate readers, you can visit the website department page for an even more in-depth analysis.

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