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Officer accused of Flock camera misuse
A Milwaukee police officer is accused of using the department's Flock Safety license plate reader system to track someone he was dating.
MILWAUKEE - A Milwaukee police officer is charged with attempted misconduct in public office after prosecutors say he used the department’s Flock Safety license plate reader system to track someone he was dating and that person’s ex-partner.
What we know:
Milwaukee Police Department — District Two officer Josue Ayala, an eight-year veteran of the department, is accused of using his authorized access to search the license plate database 179 times for personal reasons.
Josue Ayala
According to the criminal complaint, Ayala searched the plate of a person he was in a relationship with more than 50 times and that person’s ex-partner more than 100 times.
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Police policy requires officers to document the reason for each search, including a case number and investigative purpose. Prosecutors say Ayala used a single-word justification each time.
What they're saying:
"They’re using one-word descriptions to justify why they are running people’s license plates. And oftentimes, the one word is just ‘investigation.’ What are you investigating? We don’t know because there’s a lack of transparency," said Jon McCray Jones, ACLU policy analyst.
The alleged misuse was not initially uncovered internally. Charging documents state one of the victims searched their own license plate on a website called haveibeenflocked.com and then alerted police, prompting a follow-up investigation that identified nearly 200 unauthorized searches.
Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman said he is disappointed but committed to accountability.
"That is something I cannot guarantee as an executive leader. That no one will ever push the envelope, cross the line," he said. "But I am saying to our public because I understand privacy is a huge situation of trust for us. That we need to ensure we are going to hold [them] accountable when they violate that trust."
Norman said roughly 600 department employees currently have access to the Flock system and the department will review whether that number should be reduced.
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"It's supposed to be used for the right reasons to be sure we impact public safety. And I take it very seriously when anyone in this organization harms or violates that public trust," said Norman.
Dig deeper:
Prosecutors say the misdemeanor charge was part of a negotiation that included Ayala agreeing to resign from the department. A police spokesperson said as of Wednesday, Ayala was still employed.
Ayala is due in court for his initial appearance on March 4. If convicted, he may face up to nine months in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
Additionally, he is not related to Milwaukee Police Association President Alex Ayala.
Milwaukee police officer charged with misconduct over Flock searches
Josue Ayala, an officer with the Milwaukee Police Department, is charged with misconduct after prosecutors say he used the Flock license plate system nearly 180 times for personal reasons while on duty.
The Source: Information in this report is from the Milwaukee Police Department, Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office and Wisconsin Circuit Court.