NYPD launches surveillance plan to fight terrorism

The New York Police Department announced Tuesday a controversial plan to track and follow every vehicle that enters Manhattan in an effort to prevent potential terrorist attacks.Police say the new plan, coined Operation Sentinel, will use radiation censors and surveillance cameras to take pictures of the license plates on cars entering Manhattan.While many drivers welcome the added security, some feel that the operation is an assault on privacy rights.?That?s my main thing, invasion of privacy? said Dorothy Curtain, opponent of Operation Sentinel. ?If [I] haven?t done anything wrong, why are they taking my picture??Police say the license plate information will be erased from their database in about a month if it is of no use to the police.According to officials, the first phase of the plan should be complete by 2010.