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Sunnyside uses opioid settlement funds for mobile Flock camera trailer and online Lexipol training; privacy questions raised
Summary
The council on June 9 authorized a one-year lease for a Flock camera security trailer and approved Lexipol Academy access for department training, both paid from opioid settlement funds. Police leadership said the city owns recorded data but flagged public-records and privacy issues; chief said state-level fixes may be needed.
The Sunnyside City Council on June 9 approved two items funded from the city's opioid settlement account: a one-year lease for a mobile Flock camera security trailer and access to the Lexipol Academy online training platform for public-safety staff.
The police chief presented the requested Flock trailer lease as a mobile, rapidly deployable camera system similar to units used during large events, with a primary purpose of monitoring hotels and other locations tied to recent overdose deaths and drug complaints. The chief said the one-year lease cost is about $24,000 and that the city has roughly $200,000 in opioid settlement funds available to spend on public-safety uses.
Councilor Ripley moved to approve the lease and use opioid funds; the council voted to authorize the expenditure. Councilors discussed logistics, potential for purchasing a trailer in the future, and whether the vendor's contract auto-renews. The chief said the leased trailer ties into the department's existing Flock camera system and that the vendor would be responsible for hardware damage under the lease.
During debate, Councilor Hancock asked about public-records access. The chief said the city owns the data produced by Flock cameras. He described an immediate operational issue: vendor systems typically retain raw video for about 30 days and then overwrite it, which can complicate public-records compliance. The chief said the vendor's legal team offered a short-term metadata-download option to satisfy records requests and that he and vendor legal counsel had begun discussing whether surveillance footage should be treated differently at the state legislative level. "Currently, Flock owns the cameras. We own the data," the chief said; he also said he had discussed potential legislative remedies with a state representative who offered help.
Separately, council approved a Lexipol Academy agreement (approximately $3,600 through the end of the year) to provide online training modules for the entire public-safety department, including opioid-specific courses. Councilors said the platform saves travel costs and allows assignment of targeted training to different units.
Both measures carried at the June 9 meeting. Councilors and staff said they will monitor privacy and public-records logistics and return to council with policy or procedural recommendations if necessary.
