By Wendy Fry, CalMatters

California Attorney General Rob Bonta filed a lawsuit today against the City of El Cajon, accusing its police department of repeatedly violating state law by sharing automated license plate reader (ALPR) data with law enforcement agencies in more than two dozen states.

The lawsuit comes at a moment of heightened concern for immigrants and women seeking reproductive care. Once data leaves California, it can be accessed by agencies in states with different policies regarding those populations.

California passed a state law nearly a decade ago restricting how police agencies handle data collected by license plate readers. The camera systems automatically log the plate number, time, date, and location of passing vehicles. Detectives can later use that data to prove

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