Guardian Shield Automated License Plate Recognition Program

Guardian Shield, powered by Flock Safety, is Mt. Juliet’s innovative Automated License Plate Recognition (ALPR) program, introduced in 2020 to enhance public safety. Designed as an additional layer of protection for residents and visitors, the program focuses on deterring criminal activity and identifying vehicles connected to crimes. Guardian Shield is not an enforcement tool, nor does it access personal information. Instead, it alerts officers when vehicles associated with criminal activity appear on a hotlist generated by the National Crime Information Center (NCIC). This hotlist includes information on wanted persons, missing persons, felony-related vehicles, stolen plates, and stolen vehicles, entered by law enforcement nationwide.

Importantly, Guardian Shield is never used for traffic enforcement. Its sole purpose is to safeguard the community by addressing serious crimes such as homicide, kidnapping, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft, and apprehending wanted persons. The system records video and images of vehicles, which are stored securely for only 30 days. However, the technology does not identify drivers or passengers, nor does it access the Department of Safety’s license plate database, ensuring that no personal data can be retrieved.

The program is also designed to foster collaboration. Local neighborhoods and businesses have the opportunity to partner with the Mt. Juliet Police Department through Flock Safety, integrating their systems with Guardian Shield to contribute to a safer community.

Guardian Shield stands as a testament to Mt. Juliet’s commitment to protecting its residents and visitors, ensuring that safety remains a top priority.

Separating Fact from Misinformation and Disinformation

We’re proud that our community takes an active interest in public safety technology like ALPRS. While many questions come from a place of curiosity and a desire to understand, we’ve also seen instances where individuals intentionally spread false information about how the system works. This kind of disinformation is not just misleading — it’s harmful to community trust and the partnerships that make our city safer. We’re committed to being transparent and welcome anyone to reach out directly to get accurate, fact-based information.

Surveillance: ALPRs do not track individuals or provide police with a record of everywhere someone travels.

They do not track vehicles in their whole movements. ALPRs take a point-in-time image of the rear of vehicles on public roadways. Any images not used for an investigation are deleted.

Privacy: License plates are not private information.

As government-issued identifiers, license plates are legally required to be publicly visible.

Constitutional Rights: ALPRs do not violate the Fourth Amendment.

ALPRs do not violate the 4th Amendment or any other Constitutional provision. 30+ appellate and federal courts have upheld the use of LPR evidence.

Personal Information: ALPR cameras do not collect Personally Identifiable Information

Our ALPR system does not collect Personally Identifiable Information. The system only collects images of vehicles, vehicle characteristics, and license plates, which are government documents required to be displayed on vehicles as a condition of using public roadways. The system or vendor does not have access to any Personally Identifiable Information (such as names, addresses, SSNs, license plate database records, or DMV records).

Data Sharing: Data is shared only with other law enforcement agencies that meet our department's standards.

MJPD shares its data with other police departments 1:1 (PD to PD) after a review of the agency and its standards.

Data Sales: Data is not sold or shared with any private entity, corporation, or third party.

MJPD has sole access and ownership to 100% of its data. Our ALPR vendor does not sell it. Only MJPD may decide with whom to share data; those agencies must meet our department's standards. Data is deleted automatically after 30 days if it is not associated with an active criminal investigation.

Data Access: Private customers of our ALPR vendor cannot access law enforcement data or systems.

The ALPR vendor's private customers (like Lowe's stores or FedEx) can never access law enforcement data. However, private customers may, if they choose, share footage with MJPD; in no case is law enforcement data accessible to private customers.

Federal Access: Federal agencies do not have a back-door access to our ALPR vendor or data.

"Back-door access" does not exist. MJPD has full control over data sharing, and the ALPR vendor never shares data without our permission or access. Collaboration with federal agencies is MJPD's choice, and MJPD currently does not share with any federal agency.