The Henrico County Police Division has restricted access to its automatic license plate reader (ALPR) system after an internal review revealed that investigators with the Fire Marshal’s Office should not have access under a 2025 state law.
On Aug. 18, the Police Division, in consultation with the County Attorney’s Office, rescinded access to 10 members of the Fire Marshal’s Office that had been previously granted by Police as part of their work in criminal investigations for violations of state or county code.
While the county’s review flagged the access granted to those officers, it confirmed that their use of the system was consistent with Virginia’s ALPR statute.
In July 2025, Virginia’s new ALPR law limited ALPR use to members of a “law-enforcement agency” that employs “law-enforcement officers” as that term is defined by state law. While the state law definition includes employees of a police department or sheriff’s office, along with 13 additional covered law-enforcement roles, including Alcoholic Beverage Control special agents and campus police, it does not include fire marshals. In Henrico, fire marshals are employees of the Division of Fire.
“The granting of access to sworn law-enforcement officers not authorized under Virginia law was an oversight that was corrected as soon as it was discovered,” County Attorney Andrew R. Newby said. “Henrico County and its Police Division are committed to using its ALPR system for limited local law-enforcement purposes as defined by state law.”
In consultation with the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office, county officials will not use ALPR evidence obtained by the Fire Marshal’s Office in criminal cases. Five cases are affected.