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About Medina, WA

In 2009, Medina, with the "wide support of residents," installed cameras at intersections along roads entering the city. The cameras are used to capture the license plate number of every car, and a security system automatically notifies local police if the captured number is recorded in a database. Travellers are notified of the presence of the system with signs that read "You Are Entering a 24 Hour Video Surveillance Area"; according to Medina's police chief, all captured information is stored for 60 days even if nothing negative is found in the database, allowing police to mine data if a crime occurs later. One of the city's council members said the system was motivated by the belief that the need for crime prevention "outweighs concern over privacy". The system was inspired by that used in nearby Hunts Point, a town of about 500 residents which has not had a break-in for more than three years after installing their system.