Why is the license plate blurred out?

[Atman]

I'm not donning my tin foil hat, don't worry. But I find it very curious that the recent video of Dylann Roof's arrest shows at least four cops, all very much at ease, not seeming to be the least bit concerned that they are approaching a kid who just killed 9 people in cold blood. On top of that, for some reason I can't fathom, the license plate of the car has been digitally blurred out. IOW, someone had to intentionally go in with some video editing software and blur out the license plate. Why?

Maybe nothing to it, but the whole thing just seems odd to me.

[randys1]

1. Dont know, do know if he was Black man who shot white people he never would have

got out of that car alive

[Atman]

2. I don't know if you've seen the video I'm referring to.

It's posted as a Flash video, so I can't link to it here. But the cops are as casual as can be. They act as if they just pulled over a guy for running a stop sign. There was some serious effort into blurring the license plate. Just the numbers...left the state name, didn't blur too much, didn't blur the cop's leg. Someone made a very conscious effort to eliminate the license plate. I just wonder why. Whose car was it, and why shouldn't we know?

[randys1]

4. Saw it many times, the plate part I hadnt noticed, when i first saw the video I went NUTS

online here at DU

[ohheckyeah]

3. Plates are almost always

blurred because some people can get names and addresses tied to the plate. That info should be private for safety.

[Atman]

6. Oh...that is a problem?

Why can't I trace the plate number? A kid who just killed nine people is driving this car. I think the owner of the car might actually have some relevance. What if, for instance (and I am just making stuff up to prove a point) the car is registered to the chief of police? Or the Koch Brothers? Or the governor? I'm not suggesting it is, I'm just asking -- it is PUBLIC RECORD. Why is it being blocked out?

[ohheckyeah]

7. Because some wacko

will show up at the address associated with the tag. The address could belong to innocent people.

[H2O Man]

8. Your best bet

would to simply call the television station, and ask for the plate number, so that you can track down the address.

[pintobean]

9. Yeah, no tin foil hat there.

[snooper2]

10. it's HUGH! Well, not really, if you are that interested you could just google it..

blurry, no blurry


http://static1.nydailynews.com/polopoly_fs/1.2263251.1434664994!/img/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/article_635/charleston-shooting.jpg

Picture not working- but linky work-


Also, if you didn't remember, when the put the APB out for him they listed his car plate in that-

http://wnep.com/2015/06/18/dylann-storm-roof-police-name-suspect-in-charleston-church-shooting/

[CincyDem]

13. HUGH ??? As in Hugh Grant ? It's his car ??? Now THAT would be huge !!!!!

Couldn't resist.

[Atman]

14. You're new here, aren't you?

Otherwise I'd thing you were a hugh moran.

[pokerfan]

11. Driver's Privacy Protection Act

The Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1994 (also referred to as the "DPPA&quot , Title XXX of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, is a United States federal statute governing the privacy and disclosure of personal information gathered by state Departments of Motor Vehicles. The law was passed in 1994; it was introduced by Rep. Jim Moran in 1992, after an increase in opponents of abortion rights using public driving license databases to track down and harass abortion providers and patients, most notably picketing Susan Wicklund's home for a month and following her daughter to school. It is currently codified at Chapter 123 of Title 18 of the United States Code.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Driver%27s_Privacy_Protection_Act

Many Americans are infuriated and, more importantly, they are vulnerable to these violations of privacy which happen in 34 States in this country every day, my own included.

Recently, a woman in Virginia was shocked to discover black balloons and antiabortion literature on her doorstep days after she had visited a health clinic that performs abortions. Apparently, someone used her license plate number to track down personal information which was used to stalk her.

In another case in Georgia, an obsessive fan obtained the home address of a fashion model from the State Department of Motor Vehicles and assaulted her in front of her apartment.

These are but two examples of how simple it is to submit a driver's license number, pay a nominal fee to the DMV and receive a person's name and address. This is no mere loophole in a system, it is a visible gap that needs to be plugged.

https://epic.org/privacy/drivers/

[Snobblevitch]

15. It may or may not be relavant.

But that certainly does not make it a public record.

[Atman]

12. Cool. I actually got some helpful answers.

Amidst the snark and ridicule, some of you were actually able to give me a reasonable answer. Some weren't. Thank you to those who took the time to present a reasonable response.

[joeybee12]

5. Well, they could trace it to the owner, which might not be Roof...

Don't want to open that can of worms.