Cherokee County Arrests Its Own: License Plate Reader Abuse Shows Why Surveillance Needs Real Oversight
CHEROKEE COUNTY, GEORGIA — The Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office has arrested two supervisors after an internal investigation found they allegedly used the agency’s Automated License Plate Reader system for purposes unrelated to law enforcement.
According to local reporting, Lt. Chris Bryant, 45, of Acworth, and Sgt. Mike Creeden, 35, of Cartersville, were arrested and fired after audits by the agency’s Real-Time Intelligence Division revealed improper use of the ALPR system. Both were booked into the Cherokee County Adult Detention Center and reportedly held on $3,812 bond.
This was not the first arrest tied to the same investigation. Deputy Cynthia Jodesty had already been arrested on June 12 after investigators said she violated agency policy and Georgia law involving the same type of license plate reader misuse.
All three are accused of violating the public trust. Bryant and Creeden reportedly face one felony count of violation of oath of office and one misdemeanor count related to unlawful use or retention of license plate reader data.
All accused individuals are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
What Is an ALPR System?
An Automated License Plate Reader, or ALPR, is a camera system that scans license plates and stores information connected to the vehicle’s location. These systems can record the plate number, the date, the time, and often the GPS location of the scan.
That means ALPR data is not just “car information.” It can become a movement record.
It can show where someone works.
Where they worship.
Where they receive medical care.
Where they visit family.
Where they meet with an attorney.
Where they go after release from jail or prison.
That is why misuse of this technology matters.
Georgia Law Already Limits This Data
Georgia law allows law enforcement agencies to collect license plate reader data, but it also limits how that data may be used. Under O.C.G.A. § 35-1-22, captured license plate data is supposed to be accessed only for a law enforcement purpose.
The law also says agencies using ALPR systems must maintain policies for use, operation, and training.
So the issue in Cherokee County is not just “bad judgment.” If the allegations are true, this is exactly the kind of abuse Georgia law was meant to prevent.
The Bigger Problem: Surveillance Power Without Enough Oversight
Cherokee County deserves credit for one thing: according to the public reports, this case was discovered through internal audits. That matters.
But it also raises a harder question.
How many agencies use ALPR systems without meaningful audits?
How many officers have access?
How often are searches reviewed?
Who checks whether an officer searched a tag for a legitimate case, or for a personal reason?
Across the country, privacy advocates have warned that license plate reader systems can become mass surveillance tools when they are not tightly controlled. The Institute for Justice has identified at least 18 reported cases where officers allegedly used ALPR systems to track romantic partners, exes, or people they were personally interested in. Most of those cases were reportedly discovered only after victims complained, not because the agency caught the misuse first.
That should bother everyone.
Why Prison Project Cares
The Prison Project focuses on families, incarcerated people, returning citizens, and communities impacted by the criminal justice system. These are the same communities that often live under the heaviest government monitoring.
For a person on probation or parole, surveillance is already part of daily life.
For families visiting prisons and jails, their movements are already tied to a system that tracks, records, and judges them.
For people rebuilding after incarceration, one wrong assumption by law enforcement can affect employment, housing, custody, freedom, and safety.
So when police technology can track a person’s movements, the public has a right to demand strict rules and real oversight.
This is not anti-police. This is pro-accountability.
Powerful tools require powerful safeguards.
What Real Accountability Should Look Like
Cherokee County’s case should not end with three arrests and a short press release.
The public deserves answers:
How many people had access to the ALPR system?
How often are ALPR searches audited?
Were these audits routine, or did someone report suspicious behavior?
Was any outside agency asked to review the investigation?
What vendor provides the ALPR system?
Does the agency require a case number or written law-enforcement reason before a search?
Are supervisors audited more strictly than line officers?
How many improper searches were found?
Were any civilians harmed, targeted, or placed at risk?
These questions matter because surveillance abuse is not just an internal discipline issue. It is a public trust issue.
The Bottom Line
Cherokee County caught this case because someone looked.
That is the lesson.
If a sheriff’s office has technology that can track the movements of ordinary citizens, then that agency must be able to prove the system is being used lawfully. Not once. Not after a scandal. Every day.
License plate readers may help solve crimes.
But without audits, public policy, strict access limits, and consequences for misuse, they also create a dangerous opportunity for personal abuse by people with badges.
Cherokee County may have caught its own.
Now Georgia needs to ask whether every agency using this technology is being watched just as closely.
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