Federal verdict raises fresh concerns over license plate tracking and Fourth Amendment rights

SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Sept. 29, 2026 — A federal jury has found Bexar County, Texas, liable for violating the constitutional rights of Alek Schott, a Houston-area businessman who was tracked through a network of surveillance tools before being stopped, detained, and searched on a Texas highway.

The case has become a prominent test of how law enforcement agencies use Automated License Plate Readers, or ALPRs, which collect and store information about where vehicles travel. Critics argue the technology enables mass surveillance of ordinary Americans who are not suspected of any crime.

Schott was pulled over in 2022 while returning from a work trip. Deputies claimed he committed a traffic violation, then detained him, brought in a drug-sniffing dog, and searched his truck. No drugs or other contraband were found.

Evidence presented in the case showed that law enforcement had tracked Schott’s movements before the stop and shared information about his travels with local deputies. Attorneys argued that officers were using surveillance data to identify drivers first and then looking for reasons to justify traffic stops afterward.

The jury concluded that Schott’s Fourth Amendment rights were violated and awarded damages for the 76-minute detention.

While the verdict does not ban ALPR technology, it sends a clear warning about the constitutional limits of surveillance-based policing. The case raises a fundamental question for the digital age: can the government use vast databases of location data to monitor innocent citizens and then subject them to investigative stops without individualized suspicion?

A federal jury’s answer, at least in this case, was no.