Clarkston man enters plea in smashing of license plate cameras; sentencing Dec. 1
Spencer Anderson, 24, originally faced three counts of malicious destruction of police property after prosecutors say he smashed license plate reader cameras. Reports differ on whether he pleaded to all three counts or one.
By OCJ Staff
A 24-year-old Clarkston man accused of smashing license plate reader cameras in Oakland County entered a guilty plea Tuesday, Oct. 13, in Oakland County Circuit Court, WDIV reported. He is scheduled to be sentenced Dec. 1 at 8:30 a.m.
Spencer Anderson originally faced three counts of malicious destruction of police property.
Reports differ on the plea
News reports do not agree on exactly what Anderson pleaded guilty to.
- WDIV's headline and story say he pleaded guilty to the charges, and the story says he pleaded to all charges in the case. The same story also says his attorney filed a motion to dismiss two of the three counts. It does not say whether that motion was granted.
- The Oakland Press headline says Anderson pleaded to one charge, with the others dismissed.
The Journal could not confirm which count or counts the plea covers. The judge's name had not been reported.
What prosecutors allege
Prosecutors say that on Feb. 23, Anderson "forcibly broke the plate readers from their mounts and smashed them to pieces," according to WDIV.
Video from a nearby business shows a person getting out of a car and hitting two license plate cameras with a blunt object until they broke off their mounts, the station reported. Police said one of the cameras captured an image of Anderson's car and license plate before it was destroyed.
Waterford police arrested Anderson after a further investigation.
Reports did not say where the cameras were located, which agency owned them, what company made them or how much the damage cost.
Plate readers under debate
The case comes as several Oakland County communities have stepped back from automated license plate readers made by Flock Safety. Whether the cameras in this case were Flock units has not been reported.
South Lyon's City Council voted in late September to end its Flock contract and covered its cameras, and Milford's Village Council voted Oct. 5 to let its contract expire at the end of October. Milford's police chief cited, among other issues, slow responses from the company when cameras were damaged or vandalized. Madison Heights is also disconnecting its Flock cameras and not renewing its contract, WXYZ and the Oakland County Times reported Oct. 11.
Read our story on Milford's vote and our story on South Lyon's decision.
This story uses reporting from WDIV/ClickOnDetroit, The Oakland Press, WXYZ and the Oakland County Times.