CLEVELAND — A Cleveland City Councilman wants more license plate readers in the city to help catch offenders, specifically, those crossing over the city line who are running from Parma police.
Councilman Kris Harsh wants the technology installed at major border intersections along Brookpark Road to include Broadview, State and Pearl.
Old Brooklyn resident Cary Pekarcsik doesn’t think it’s a bad idea.
Up until late February, Pekarcsik got around in his van, until it took a big hit.
Surveillance video shows a car being chased by Parma police going right into oncoming traffic on Broadview at Schaaf.
The car nearly smashed head-on into Pekarcsik.
"I still go to bed seeing this car going past me and seeing lights. I wake up - 'Oh, what the hell happened? Oh, I’m still here,” Pekarcsik said.
He no longer has to walk to his doctor or grocery store. A friend recently helped him out with a new ride.
“I couldn’t believe it,” Pekarcsik said.
That chase is under review by Parma police. It was one of five pursuits by Parma since last summer into the city of Cleveland in which three people died in serious crashes.
Safety leaders from both cities have met.
“Communities need to feel safe. It's one of the biggest issues for any councilperson anywhere in the city of Cleveland,” Cleveland City Councilman Kris Harsh said.
Harsh wants license plate readers installed at major intersections that border Parma.
"To try to assist the police officers and give them the reassurance that if somebody goes through that intersection we’re going to have their plates,” Harsh said.
Policing expert Kalfani Ture, an assistant professor at Widener University in Pennsylvania, says the popular technology has value if used both legally and ethically.
“What it does quite efficiently is it allows law enforcement to track suspects in real-time,” Ture said.
Ture says he understands there are concerns about privacy and mining of data.
"The problem is, which I agree with the ACLU, except for a few states and a few municipalities, this is a heavily unregulated sort of industry and you have bad actors and people who operate this technology not in good faith,” Ture said.
Last month, in an email, Parma’s mayor noted a pursuit policy change last spring, as well as additional training.
In 2023, Parma said it had fewer chases than the year before and called them off more frequently.
“They are actually calling off more and more chases so they’re being responsive to the community,” Harsh said.
Pekarcsik still doesn’t feel safe enough to go out as he pleases.
“I don’t go out on Thursdays 'cause I got hit on Thursday and I don’t know I’m just scared to go out on Thursday,” Pekarcsik said.
And even though he’s content with the idea of license plate readers, he’s not sold on it until it actually happens.
“I want an answer that’s in cement that they’re not going to turn around and say oh we’re not doing the cameras now,” Pekarcsik said.
Cleveland police say license plate readers are a critical tool, but say they can’t reveal where they are, they say, to maintain their effectiveness.
