More Police Officers Fired, Investigated, or Arrested for Misusing Flock Camera Systems (wtoc.com)
- Reference: 0184896352
- News link: https://yro.slashdot.org/story/26/08/08/0453229/more-police-officers-fired-investigated-or-arrested-for-misusing-flock-camera-systems
- Source link: https://www.wtoc.com/2026/08/07/savannah-police-department-fires-6-employees-over-flock-safety-system-misuse/
> All six cases are also under independent criminal investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation... Investigators found that employees were running searches on personal acquaintances and family members. One officer was found to have given someone from an outside law enforcement agency access to SPD's Flock Safety system, which they weren't authorized to do.
Elsewhere ABC News reports that a female North Carolina police officer [2]was arrested Wednesday "for allegedly using Flock license plate readers to track her boyfriend's ex-wife, according to police..." The officer is accused of accessing the system for personal use 31 different times, including at least twice when she was off-duty, and listing most of the lookups as motor vehicle infractions. [Police chief Ron] Campurciani "added that the department is looking at 10 other potential misuse cases and said three 'look like they could be problematic.'"
And [3]an Ohio news station reports a police officer who recently resigned "while under internal investigation repeatedly used the Flock license plate reader system to search a vehicle registered to someone investigators identified as his likely domestic partner."
Meanwhile, 404 Media reported this week that an Iowa county's usage police specifically tells police officers — in all capital letters — [4]not to tell occupants of a vehicle that an automated license plate reader was used for a traffic stop. It also instructs officers to not even mention the use of the ALPR technology in their reports "unless absolutely necessary," according to information they'd obtained from a public records request," suggesting they instead they call the cameras "county resources":
> It is not just local police in small communities who are creating policies designed to obfuscate Flock usage. Earlier this year, we reported that police in multiple states were being told to be "as vague as permissible" about why they were using Flock because their searches could be obtained using public records requests, and that warning was being shared by the FBI and Department of Justice...
>
> In the [Iowa county] public records request, Sheriff Don Phillips said "there is no need" to tell people about the use of Flock... "because the information is verified by the deputy running the license plate. It is common practice for law enforcement to refrain from disclosing investigative methods and sources to prevent criminals from learning how to circumvent them."
[1] https://www.wtoc.com/2026/08/07/savannah-police-department-fires-6-employees-over-flock-safety-system-misuse/
[2] https://abcnews.com/US/officer-allegedly-flock-license-plate-cameras-track-boyfriends/story?id=135418955
[3] https://www.nbc4i.com/news/local-news/reynoldsburg/records-ohio-police-officer-used-flock-to-search-plate-of-likely-domestic-partner/
[4] https://www.404media.co/do-not-mention-alpr-usage-how-cops-are-trying-to-hide-the-existence-of-flock/
But but but... (Score:2)
...Flock cameras are helping us find lost dogs!
Re: (Score:2)
Wrong company. That was a Ring camera advertisement. It was just an easy step for people to see how the same system could be used to track down people, too.
Re: (Score:2)
Nope. Right company. Law enforcement always responds to abuses like this with specious counterbalancing arguments.
Equality! (Score:2)
Good to see every gender of police officer will casually abuse the big brother machine to spy on someone's ex wife, truly we have achieved gender equality.
Great (Score:3)
Now watch the "fired" officers get hired the next day in another jurisdiction.
Just another reminder (Score:2)
Whatever data is collected, it will get used against people. Whether legal, illegal or secret with no legal controls on it. The only protection is to outlaw the data-collection itself and fit that ban with personal (!) penalties for violators.
Welp (Score:2)
Deliberately obfuscating or misleading the public about the mass surveillance abuse is sure to go a long way towards rebuilding all that public trust lost from all those police shootings.
Re:Welp (Score:5, Informative)
> Why does Flock have to be honest to the public in any way? Are they under oath? Genuinely asking?
I know reading comprehension is hard, but even the summary has specific examples of police creating a policy to hide their use of Flock cameras. We're not talking about Flock being honest to the public. We're talking about police behavior.
Re: (Score:2)
why are you unable to spot the subject in simple sentences? are you high?
Re: (Score:2)
We should fund the police better so they can get more training!
Re: (Score:2)
Now, if there only was a rational voter majority...