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Monticello resident urges council to reject 'flock' ALPR cameras, citing privacy and Supreme Court precedent
Summary
At the Jan. 12 meeting, Manny Manuel Torres urged the City Council not to fund a proposed automatic license-plate reader (ALPR) 'flock' camera system, saying it costs $10,000 (GL account 015138010) and raises Fourth Amendment and misuse concerns, referencing Carpenter v. United States.
Monticello — During the public-comment portion of the Jan. 12 City Council meeting, local resident Manny Manuel Torres urged council members to reject the city’s planned purchase of an automated license-plate reader (ALPR) "flock" camera system, telling members the payment-approval report lists the purchase at $10,000 (GL account 015138010).
Torres said these systems are ‘‘very easy to abuse’’ and recounted national examples in which ALPR searches produced false positives or were used to track or harass individuals without appropriate safeguards. He warned that centralized, AI-assisted surveillance could erode privacy and likened the trajectory to ‘‘becoming like a communist China.’’ He also cited Carpenter v. United States, saying the Supreme Court warned that public-location data can create near-perfect surveillance and is protected under the Fourth Amendment.
Torres asked fellow Monticello residents to oppose the acquisition, saying, "I don't want to be watched everywhere that I go." No formal ordinance or staff motion to purchase the ALPR system was taken during the meeting; the comment was heard during the public-comment period and entered into the record.
Source: Public comment by Manny Manuel Torres at the City Council meeting, Jan. 12, 2026.
