GREEN RIVER — A Green River Police Department detective urged the Green River City Council this week to reconsider its decision not to fund a license plate reader program, saying the technology could have helped investigators in at least two recent vehicle theft cases.

Detective Brad Dodson, who said he was speaking as a private citizen and not on behalf of the department, addressed the Council during the public comment portion of the meeting. He said he was disappointed the Council did not move forward with the license plate reader, or LPR, project and asked the Council to take more time to hear from Police Chief Shaun Sturlaugson before finalizing that decision.

Dodson said residents regularly ask him whether the department has access to license plate readers or similar camera technology, and that the tools are useful for investigations.

Dodson said after the Council’s last meeting, a vehicle was stolen from a driveway in Green River. He said he made calls to other law enforcement agencies to use their license plate readers to help track the stolen vehicle. He said an attempted vehicle theft occurred the following weekend and said investigators have a lead on a vehicle in that case but declined to share details, citing the ongoing investigation.

Dodson said he was not criticizing the Council’s decision but wanted to make himself available to answer questions or address concerns from the Council or the community. He offered to meet with Council members individually.

Councilman Gary Killpack said later in the meeting that the Council had not voted against license plate readers themselves, but had voted down a funding mechanism for the program. He said the item could still return to the Council if a funding method is identified, though he did not lay out a specific timeline, saying only that the Council would need to figure out how to pay for it. Killpack said some community confusion stemmed from not understanding that distinction.

Killpack also said that some residents have had their license plates picked up by plate readers in Salt Lake City, where the technology is used extensively.

Before addressing the LPR issue, Killpack said he had received an email accusing him of being dishonest. He said he did not accept the characterization and called it unacceptable for anyone to make that claim about a Council member without basis. He said he wanted the record to reflect that the Council had not voted against license plate readers outright, only against a funding mechanism.

The Council rejected a $111,956 Wyoming Office of Homeland Security grant for the LPR program in a 6-1 vote during its July 7 meeting, with Killpack casting the lone vote in favor. Unanimous public opposition was voiced during that meeting’s comment period. A motion by Killpack to table the item for a public workshop before the vote died for lack of a second, though because the original motion received a second before failing, the Council retains the ability to bring the grant agreement back for future consideration.