Flock camera pushback: Fond du Lac, Racine counties ending use
Flock camera removal in Racine County
MILWAUKEE - Several law enforcement agencies in southeast Wisconsin announced on Friday, Sep. 4, that they are stopping the use of the Flock camera system over alleged undisclosed data collection.
Dropping Flock
What we know:
On Friday, Racine County Sheriff Christopher Schmaling ordered the immediate removal of all Flock cameras operated by the Racine County Sheriff’s Office.
Additionally, several law enforcement agencies in Fond du Lac County sent out a joint press release, indicating they are no longer using Flock cameras as well. That includes the Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office, the Fond du Lac Police Department, the Waupun Police Department, the Ripon Police Department, and the North Fond du Lac Police Department.
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Kenosha police ending Flock contract, moving to Axon
FOX6 Investigators have now documented at least 148 cases of alleged Flock misuse by police officers across the country – including 11 in Wisconsin. Now, the City of Kenosha says it's ditching its Flock contract and going with another vendor.
Racine County Sheriff's Office
What they're saying:
The Racine County Sheriff’s Office says it entered into an agreement with Flock with the understanding that information collected by its cameras would be subject to a 30-day retention period and used for legitimate public-safety and crime-solving purposes.
The sheriff’s office has since learned that Flock generates a separate data set from information collected by its cameras and markets that dataset to other government and private customers through its "Traffic Analytics" product. Flock has confirmed that this aggregated dataset is retained for up to five years, separate from and in addition to the 30-day retention period the sheriff's office understood to apply to all information generated by its cameras for public-safety and crime-solving purposes.
"This is not what we agreed to, and it is not what the public was led to believe," said Sheriff Christopher Schmaling. "The Sheriff’s Office will not participate in a system that appears to use public safety as a justification for mass surveillance and the collection and monetization of information about innocent people. If Flock used the public-safety purpose of this technology to build a broader commercial data business without the public’s knowledge, that is a serious breach of trust. We will not tolerate it."
The Racine County Sheriff’s Office has obtained legal counsel and is taking steps to terminate its agreement with Flock.
Racine County Executive Ralph Malicki stated, "I completely support Sheriff Schmaling’s decision to end the County’s relationship with Flock and to explore other vendors to provide this important law enforcement technology, which will be closely monitored."
The Racine County Sheriff’s Office says it will keep exploring the Automatic License Plate Reader (ALPR) technology through alternative vendors, and maintains the technology is a powerful investigative tool, but it "must be accompanied by appropriate supervision, accountability, transparency, and clearly defined safeguards."
Fond du Lac County law enforcement agencies
What we know:
Fond du Lac County law enforcement agencies that use Flock cameras are discontinuing their use county-wide, effective immediately.
That includes the Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office, the Fond du Lac Police Department, the Waupun Police Department, the Ripon Police Department, and the North Fond du Lac Police Department.
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Similar to Racine County, this decision follows the discovery that search data from Fond du Lac County Flock systems, including records tied to active investigations, was disclosed to the public by law enforcement agencies in other states in response to open records requests they received, making it accessible nationwide. Fond du Lac County law enforcement agencies did not authorize the release of this data, as under Wisconsin state statutes, records pertaining to active investigations are exempt from public disclosure.
The Fond du Lac County law enforcement agencies also maintain the usefulness of such technology with safeguards, saying:
"The technology itself helped us apprehend dangerous criminals including homicide and shooting suspects, child sex-trafficking suspects, drug traffickers, and stalkers. It has also helped locate missing, suicidal, and endangered people, including trafficking victims. We've heard directly from residents grateful for those outcomes, and we've heard from others with real concerns about privacy and oversight. Both perspectives are valid, and both factored into this decision. Individual privacy rights must be protected as this technology continues to evolve."
This is a developing story, check back for updates.
The Source: The Racine County Sheriff's Office sent FOX6 a press release. Also, the Fond du Lac County Sheriff's Office, the Fond du Lac Police Department, the Waupun Police Department, the Ripon Police Department, and the North Fond du Lac Police Department sent FOX6 a joint press release.