Articles
What the Flock?
An index of reporting, court records, and public filings showing what happens beyond Flock's public-safety claims. These are the documented problems, mistakes, and abuses that can be easy to miss when the story comes only from the vendor or the agencies using the cameras.
143 articles · page 8 of 8 · RSS
-
Do license plate readers enhance the initial and residual deterrent effects of police patrol? A quasi-randomized test
nij.ojp.gov
A 2021 randomized field experiment assigned license plate readers to some hot-spot patrols and not others, analyzing 785 patrols across 33 locations. Stolen vehicle recoveries rose, but arrests did not, and the readers produced no measurable drop in calls for service during or after patrols. The authors found little clear evidence that ALPRs prevent crime in general patrol.
-
Judge Rules Lawsuit Challenging Norfolk's Use of Flock Cameras Can Proceed
ij.org
The Institute for Justice announced that a federal judge declined to dismiss its Fourth Amendment challenge to Norfolk's 172-camera Flock network, citing Carpenter v. United States on warrantless location tracking. Plaintiffs Lee Schmidt and Crystal Arrington argue that a city-wide record of their daily movements is a search requiring a warrant.
-
Dozens of Innocent Motorists Have Been Pulled Over, Detained at Gunpoint, or Jailed Due to AI License Plate Camera Errors
ij.org
The Institute for Justice compiled reported cases in which ALPR errors led to innocent drivers being stopped, held at gunpoint, or jailed. Documented incidents include a Sherwood, Arkansas couple detained while their six-week-old infant remained in the car, and a Colorado driver who spent thirteen days in jail before the misidentification was caught.