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Sheriff and vendor outline Flock license-plate camera plan and privacy safeguards
Summary
San Bernardino County sheriff representatives and Flock (vendor) presented an automatic license-plate reading system for the Morongo Basin, including public-safety use cases, proposed deployment along Highway 62 and assurances about retention (365 days) and limited data uses; council and residents raised privacy, security and funding questions and were told the system will be funded from state/local law-enforcement supplemental funds and returned for formal staff action in January.
County sheriff representatives and a vendor representative described a proposed deployment of Flock automatic license-plate-reading (ALPR) cameras for the Morongo Basin and the city of Twentynine Palms.
Jesse Mund, Flock account manager, described the technology: pole-mounted cameras capture rear vehicle images, run optical recognition to extract license-plate characters and compare them with agency watchlists to produce proactive alerts (for wanted vehicles, Amber Alerts and investigative searches). "There is no facial recognition; this is strictly the rear of a vehicle with a license plate," Mund said.
Lieutenant Al Huff (Morongo Basin sheriff station) framed the county's operational need: the sheriff's office covers about 2,700 square miles with limited deputies, he said, and ALPRs multiply investigative reach and speed. Huff gave examples in which ALPR matches helped identify vehicles in violent-crime investigations, locate missing persons and recover stolen merchandise.
Councilmembers and residents pressed the sheriff on privacy, retention and funding. Huff said the sheriff's retention policy is 365 days and that searches require a valid case or reason; he said the system does not connect to third-party databases for personally identifying information at the camera level. On cost, Huff estimated per-camera hardware at roughly $2,500—3,300 and said the initial deployment would be paid from state-provided local law-enforcement supplemental funds (no direct immediate city fiscal impact). He outlined a phased deployment focused on Highway 62 and principal commercial intersections, with an initial phase covering nine intersections.
The nut graf: The council expressed both public-safety support for a tool that can accelerate investigations and strong interest in robust privacy safeguards and public outreach. Councilmembers requested staff reports, details on data-security controls and a formal staff item to authorize funding or lease arrangements; Huff said staff will bring a formal staff report and an expectation to present a funding/consent item in January.
Ending: No formal council authorization was taken at this meeting; the sheriff's office will return with a staff recommendation and equipment/funding specifics for council consideration.
