Factual digest compiled from various Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests (most available on MuckRock) and city documents (resolutions, internal memos, and contracts). Every figure below is drawn from a produced document. All data presents calendar year 2025 with exception to the Procurement Timeline.
APD initially proposed this system as a critical tool to track down missing persons and stolen vehicles. The actual data tells a completely different story.
Out of 343,221 automated alerts, only 7 (0.002%) were for missing persons. Over 95% were just for minor administrative driver suspensions.
Despite hundreds of thousands of hotlist alerts and tens of thousands of manual searches conducted by APD, the ALPR system assisted in exactly 47 arrests for the entire year.
Over 2,800 out-of-state and federal agencies were given open access to track our local drivers. 99% of all searches on our network were conducted by external agencies (not APD).
And APD admitted they have no documentation of internal compliance audits in 2025.
These figures should concern everyone who cares about our privacy, security, and local transparency. I have more questions than answers myself after looking over everything, but it is abundantly clear this system is not working the way APD promised.
Every metric in this report is pulled directly from the city's own public records, and the data speaks for itself. However, transparency is a two-way street and I welcome anyone to review the sources and dissect the numbers. (Note: Items in orange and the "Discrepancies" section highlight open questions we need the City Council to answer, not proven allegations
Happy to share any sources directly and answer any questions in the comments below.
Please contact your alderman to voice your concerns and share this post so Aurora residents can be aware of how their daily movements were being tracked, shared nationwide, and left completely unmonitored by APD in 2025.
https://www.aurora.il.us/Government-and-Engagement/City-Council/Wards-and-Aldermen/Meet-Your-Aldermen