A Santa Clara County Superior Court judge has dismissed a lawsuit challenging San Jose's network of over 500 license plate reader cameras. The ruling, delivered on Friday, October 3, 2026, by Judge Jeffrey El-Hajj, rejected arguments that warrantless police searches of automated license plate reader (ALPR) data violate California's constitutional privacy guarantees and protections against unreasonable searches, as reported by San José Spotlight.
This decision aligns with a previous California Appellate Court ruling that stated drivers have no reasonable expectation of privacy when on public streets. The plaintiffs, including immigrant rights and civil liberties groups, are currently reviewing their options for an appeal. A separate federal lawsuit targeting San Jose's ALPR system is still ongoing.
What does this mean for drivers in San Jose?
For drivers in San Jose, this ruling means that the city's police department can continue to access and search data from its network of over 500 license plate readers without needing a warrant. The data collected by these cameras can track vehicle movements throughout the city. While the city has implemented some safeguards, such as reducing data retention from one year to 30 days, the core issue of warrantless access remains upheld by this court decision.
This ruling does not change the physical presence of the cameras. Drivers can still use resources like the FlockDetour map to identify locations where ALPRs are known to be installed.
What were the arguments in the lawsuit?
The lawsuit, filed in November 2025, argued that the vast amount of data collected by San Jose's ALPR network could be used to track individuals' movements, infringing on privacy rights. Plaintiffs requested that law enforcement be required to obtain a warrant before searching the ALPR data.
Judge El-Hajj's decision referenced a 2024 ruling from California's 4th District Court of Appeals. That case found that video evidence from San Diego's streetlight cameras was admissible in a murder prosecution, noting that individuals on public streets should expect to be filmed. The judge rejected the argument that the sheer scale of San Jose's ALPR network made it inherently more invasive.
This legal challenge comes after public scrutiny intensified following the firing of a San Jose police officer in April for allegedly sharing location data from the ALPR system with a relative. In response to public concern, the City Council has implemented some policy changes:
- Data Retention: Reduced from one year to 30 days.
- New Safeguards: Proposed measures aim to prevent city employees from using personal devices to access sensitive law enforcement data.
Critics continue to advocate for stronger controls, with some calling for San Jose to terminate its contract with Flock Safety, the ALPR vendor, as other Bay Area jurisdictions like Santa Clara County have done.