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Residents urge removal of Flock cameras; city manager schedules informational session
Summary
Multiple residents told the council they oppose license-plate/vehicle-tracking cameras deployed in the county and asked the city to take them down; City Manager James Freed said the city would host an informational session with police and Flock representatives and legal review to explain safeguards and controls.
Speakers at the podium urged the council to halt or reverse the deployment of Flock vehicle-tracking cameras that local residents said create permanent records of citizens' movements. Greg DeVoe told the council "take them down," arguing the systems collect everyday travel information without the warrants required for targeted investigations. Alexandria Little, who displayed a poster reading "flock out, no mass surveillance in Port Huron," told the council these cameras and the private-company data-retention model pose civil-liberties risks.
City Manager James Freed acknowledged residents' concerns about Fourth Amendment protections and said the city would hold an informational session in the next two months with police and Flock representatives and review internal controls and legal opinions drafted when the system was deployed. "We're going to get an informational session on the flock sometime in the next 2 months...we're gonna shine sunlight on this issue," he said, committing to public outreach and legal oversight; the manager said there are internal controls restricting who can access the system.
