Post #148412 by DawnTiki on Tue, Mar 22, 2005 12:17 PM

freddiefreelance wrote:

San Diego has 2 copies of the book, one of which is currently checked out to me.

Watch out freddie, you never know where or when Big Brother maybe watching.

Arlington, VA Uses Cameras to Tow for Overdue Library Books
Arlington, VA and New Haven, CT are using a new camera technology to tow cars with unpaid parking tickets or overdue library fees.

Arlington, Virginia has taken the next step in automated camera enforcement. Next month, it will expand its use of "BootFinder," a camera device that scans license plates of parked cars and compares it against a database of unpaid fines. If the car's owner is listed as delinquent, the car can be towed -- and if the owner doesn't pay within 10 days the car is auctioned.

Currently Arlignton's program focuses on unpaid car and property taxes, and the city's one camera has collected $90,000. In March, however, any unpaid fine is fair game, "anything from late park and recreation fees to overdue library books."

New Haven, Connecticut has towed hundreds of cars and collected $500,000 with its BootFinder. Bridgeport is ready to get on board as well.

The system uses a $25,000 camera mounted in a laptop-equipped minivan and is capable of taking a thousand photos every minute. Arlington County Treasurer Frank O'Leary told the Washington Times, "We're just always looking for new ways to skin the cat."

http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/01/196.asp

[ Edited by: DawnTiki on 2005-03-22 12:20 ]