CHICAGO (WLS) — A grassroots push against Flock automated license plate reader cameras and other surveillance tools is gaining momentum in Northwest Indiana. The debate intensified after one community voted to terminate its agreement with the company in the wake of an investigation into alleged police officer misuse.
Augusta Guffroy, who founded DeFlock Lake County, is among the activists calling for the removal of the cameras.
“I’m afraid that we are building an infrastructure for a police state,” Guffroy said.
“We are paying to be surveilled on, and I have a problem with that. Where’s the consent? Our tax dollars are paying for these cameras,” she said.
Guffroy said simply switching to another automated license plate reader platform would not address her concerns.
“We want them gone completely. And we do not want them replaced with another ALPR,” she said.
She contends that the expanding network of automated license plate reader cameras threatens personal privacy. Flock’s technology can share vehicle data with hundreds of police departments in Illinois and, potentially, agencies elsewhere in the country.
When asked whether Flock cameras make her feel safer in Illinois, Guffroy said they do not. “Not at all. I do not feel safer with flock cameras. Now, I think that they’re tools of intimidation. I don’t know who’s on the other side of that camera.”
Privacy questions have also been fueled by the website haveibeenflocked.com, which notifies users whether a license plate has been stored in the Flock system.
Police departments that use the technology argue that local safeguards are in place to prevent abuse. They also maintain that Flock cameras and other license plate reader systems remain critical tools in criminal investigations and efforts to solve crime.
But, previous I-Team reporting found at least a dozen officers across the Chicago area accused of misusing Flock camera technology capable of tracking a person’s location in real time.
According to that reporting, at least two agencies have forwarded cases involving alleged misuse of Flock Safety license plate reader technology to county prosecutors for review of possible criminal charges.
One of those cases involved former Prairie Grove police officer William Copp, who was arrested and charged with official misconduct after searching the Flock system for his ex-partner’s vehicle more than 100 times, according to the Prairie Grove police chief.
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Opposition to the technology has also emerged in Woodstock, Illinois, where residents have raised concerns about cameras installed around the city’s historic downtown square.
Francis said policies alone cannot prevent misuse.
“There’s really no amount of policy that can stop, anybody from misusing this,” he said.
In Chesterton, Indiana, the Town Council voted unanimously this week to terminate its contract with Flock after a misuse investigation involving one of its officers.
Council President Erin Collins said the company’s auditing system made oversight difficult.
“Because of Flack’s limitations in their auditing system, they really they made it very difficult for municipalities and for police departments to monitor the the behavior that’s going on in the searches that are being made,” Collins said.
Collins said community advocacy played a role in bringing attention to the issue.
“I appreciate any kind of community activism. I know that sometimes it can seem, like it’s disruptive, but I also think that people have a right to have their voice heard, especially within their local government,” she said.
The I-Team has repeatedly requested an interview with Flock’s CEO but was told he was unavailable. In previous reporting, a company spokesperson said the product now includes enhanced guardrails designed to protect against misuse.
The Woodstock Police Department said it does not monitor individuals and uses the technology solely to solve crimes. The department recently implemented a policy governing its use.
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