Battles lines drawn over police collection of license plate data

HARTFORD – Law enforcement agencies that collect license-plate information would have to destroy the records after five years, under a bill debated Tuesday.

During a public hearing before the Public Safety and Security Committee, police said the information gathered is an important crime-fighting tool.

But opponents including the American Civil Liberties Union – Connecticut called the collection a threat to constitutional freedoms and asked the committee to require a shorter retention period.