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License-plate readers · Richland County

Richland County

Using license-plate readers · 3 agencies documented

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Irmo Police Department

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
11
11 Flock cameras installed for nearly four years as of July 2026; contract approved to add 22 for a total of 33 (install date unknown).
Contract
Flock Safety: $403,050 total · approved by Irmo Town Council (4-1) · Five-year contract adding 22 cameras, paid from general funds; WIS rounds to $403,000. (The Post and Courier, July 22, 2026; WIS News 10, July 21, 2026)
Sources
The Post and Courier, July 22, 2026; WIS News 10, July 21, 2026; Flock Safety / Lexington Police Department, Dec. 7, 2025
  1. July 21, 2026 Town Council voted 4-1 to approve a $403,050 five-year Flock contract expanding from 11 to 33 cameras; Councilmember Gabriel Penfield cast the no vote. Police Chief Bobby Dale supported it. (The Post and Courier, July 22, 2026; WIS News 10, July 21, 2026)
  2. Aug. 2026 At least two Irmo plate-reader cameras were damaged, apparently with foam sealant; police were aware. (WIS News 10, Aug. 13, 2026; WACH Fox 57, Aug. 21, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • Vandalism date not given beyond the week before Aug. 13, 2026, hence YYYY-MM.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Richland County Sheriff's Department

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
50
"More than 50" local Flock cameras (retail centers, intersections, residential areas) as of late September 2026; 50 is a floor, not an exact count.
Sources
WIS News 10 (on Live 5 News site), Sept. 28, 2026; ABC News 4 (WCIV), from WACH Fox, Sept. 14, 2026; Flock Safety / Lexington Police Department, Dec. 7, 2025
  1. 2022 Department began deploying Flock license plate cameras. (WIS News 10 (on Live 5 News site), Sept. 28, 2026)
  2. Sept. 14, 2026 Sheriff Leon Lott credited Flock with helping solve several 2026 cases and said the cameras capture no photo of the driver. (ABC News 4 (WCIV), from WACH Fox, Sept. 14, 2026)
  3. Sept. 28, 2026 The department told WIS that 483 deputies can use the system, data that is not flagged is erased after 30 days, every search needs an active case number and a reason, and repeated searches for one plate lock the user out. It counted 687 investigative successes and 296 recovered vehicles (about $4 million) since 2022 and 94 homicides solved with plate-reader data since 2023, and said it backs proposed state legislation making unauthorized searches a crime. (WIS News 10 (on Live 5 News site), Sept. 28, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • Cost and contract terms not found.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Columbia Police Department

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Vendor not named in source
Cameras
Count not documented
Real-Time Crime Center has access to license plate readers; no LPR count or vendor reported. Overall camera views reported as 600 (WIS) vs. more than 800 (WACH) on the same day, June 30, 2026.
Sources
WIS News 10, June 30, 2026; WACH Fox 57, June 30, 2026; The Post and Courier, date not shown
  1. 2021 Real-Time Crime Center set up at the department's Main Street building, linking city cameras, body and dash cameras, license plate readers and ShotSpotter; searches require a case number. (The Post and Courier, date not shown)
  2. June 30, 2026 At a media day, the department showed its Real-Time Crime Center, which officials said has access to license plate readers along with hundreds of camera views and ShotSpotter. (WIS News 10, June 30, 2026; WACH Fox 57, June 30, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • Vendor not identified. Columbia PD does not appear on Lexington PD's Flock data-sharing list (as of Dec. 7, 2025).
  • Separate $8 million five-year city camera project reported; not clear how much of it is ALPR.
  • Post and Courier article date not captured on the page (URL pattern suggests May 2024).

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Statewide

  1. March 2024 By March 2024 SCDOT had stopped approving new plate-reader installations in state right-of-way, citing ongoing litigation, according to an SCDOT spokeswoman. In February 2024 Transportation Secretary Christy Hall had said the department found more than 200 Flock cameras on state right-of-way without permits. A Flock spokesman said cities, counties and private owners could still install cameras elsewhere. The date the pause began was not reported. (The Post and Courier, March 11, 2024)
  2. July 2024 Local agencies reported working around the SCDOT pause, e.g., mounting cameras on private property or utility poles (Florence County SO, Loris PD; both outside the Midlands). (WMBF News, July 3, 2024)
  3. Jan. 14, 2025 H. 3155 (Rep. Rutherford) introduced and referred to House Judiciary: would restrict ALPR use to listed purposes, cap retention at 90 days, bar sale of data, and make violations a misdemeanor. No action after referral shown on the bill page. (South Carolina General Assembly, Jan. 14, 2025)
  4. Feb. 13, 2025 H. 4013 (Reps. J.E. Johnson, Gilliam, Bailey, Guest; Alexander added 2025-03-26) introduced and referred to House Education and Public Works: lists lawful ALPR uses, 90-day retention for law enforcement absent an investigation, audit logs, written public policy, ban on sale; expressly lets SLED operate an ALPR database; adds Section 57-3-786 directing SCDOT to set up a permit process for government cameras on non-interstate rights of way. No action after referral shown. (South Carolina General Assembly, Feb. 13, 2025; Municipal Association of South Carolina, date not shown)
  5. March 12, 2025 S. 447 (Sen. Brian Adams; companion H. 3155) introduced and referred to Senate Judiciary. Similar framework to H. 4013 (permitted uses, 90-day retention, written policy, access logs, visual confirmation before stops, no sale of data, SLED database authorized, SCDOT permitting via new Section 57-3-786) and makes misuse of law enforcement ALPR data a misdemeanor (fine up to $1,000 and up to two years in prison). (South Carolina General Assembly, April 9, 2026)
  6. April 15, 2025 WSPA quoted an SCDOT spokesperson on April 15, 2025 saying it was "unclear" whether the devices are allowed in state-owned right-of-way; on April 17 WIS reported SCDOT had not installed readers in state right-of-way for more than a year and was waiting for direction from lawmakers. (WIS News 10, April 17, 2025; WSPA 7NEWS (via Yahoo News), date not shown)
  7. April 15, 2025 A Senate Judiciary subcommittee gave S. 447 a favorable report; the full committee carried it over (per MASC tracker). (Municipal Association of South Carolina, date not shown)
  8. March 2, 2026 Attorney General Alan Wilson joined two Georgia-led multistate friend-of-the-court briefs, with 17 other states signing alongside South Carolina, supporting police use of license plate readers against Fourth Amendment challenges. The office's release does not name the cases or courts. (South Carolina Attorney General's Office, March 2, 2026)
  9. April 9, 2026 Senate Judiciary Committee reported S. 447 favorably (statehouse bill page lists 4/9/2026; MASC tracker lists 04.08.2026). No later floor action is shown on either page; FOX Carolina reported in September 2026 that lawmakers are expected to revisit ALPR rules in January 2027. As of these sources South Carolina has no statute specifically governing ALPR. (South Carolina General Assembly, April 9, 2026; Municipal Association of South Carolina, date not shown; FOX Carolina, Sept. 11, 2026)
  10. Sept. 2026 Gov. Henry McMaster, asked by FOX Carolina after Florida moved to remove Flock cameras from state roads, said law enforcement should not be deprived of such tools and that misuse should bring accountability. (FOX Carolina, Sept. 11, 2026)

State agencies

South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED)

Status
Using license-plate readers
Vendors
Vendor not named in source
Cameras
6
SLED's own units as SLED described them in 2022: five trailer-mounted portable readers and one fixed reader; most reads in its central database come from local agencies (48 contributing agencies, ~400 million reads, three-year retention, per 2022 reporting).
Sources
GovTech / The State, Nov. 17, 2022; WSPA 7NEWS (via Yahoo News), date not shown; Flock Safety / Lexington Police Department, Dec. 7, 2025
  1. Nov. 2022 Reporting on a petition against SLED described its central ALPR database ("Back Office"): about 400 million plate images kept three years, SLED-owned units of five trailers and one fixed camera, data from 48 agencies. (GovTech / The State, Nov. 17, 2022)
  2. Dec. 7, 2025 SLED is listed among organizations with access to Lexington Police Department's Flock data on Lexington PD's Flock transparency portal. (Flock Safety / Lexington Police Department, Dec. 7, 2025)
Conflicts and open questions
  • WSPA (April 15, 2025) quoted senior SLED agent Mark Amos as saying the data is used only for law-enforcement investigations and that every search has a reason behind it.
  • No South Carolina statute expressly addresses the database; petitioners challenging it say no law authorizes it and SLED says state law does. H. 4013 and S. 447 would authorize it expressly.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.