Despite public backlash against Flock surveillance cameras, the Athens Police Department and Athens County Sheriff’s Office continue to benefit from the technology, according to Nick Magruder, the Athens police chief.
Flock Safety is a company that manufactures and operates security hardware and software, including automatic license plate readers, or ALPR, to collect data. ALPRs, commonly referred to as Flock cameras, have the ability to capture license plates, vehicle characteristics and record vehicle sightings at a specific time and place.
Although some have speculated that Flock’s ALPR cameras have facial recognition capabilities, that is not true. Flock Safety does offer video cameras with human detection abilities, but the current cameras in Athens do not have that capability.
The Athens County Sheriff's Office and the Athens Police Department have contracts with Flock Safety. The Athens Police Department first signed with Flock in 2024. Athens Police Chief Nick Magruder said that, after seeing what the technology could provide, he wanted to try it out quickly.
After seeing high success with the initial four-camera installation, APD decided to renew its contract, extending it until 2027 and adding two additional cameras. APD has now deployed six cameras in the city, and the sheriff’s office has deployed 10 cameras in the county.
“The quality-of-life cases like thefts, criminal damagings; a vehicle hit-and-skip was a big one that we were able to solve,” Magruder said. “I just felt like it was a good tool to add those two other cameras.”
Since their implementation, APD has been able to solve 30 to 40 cases a year using ALPR data, according to Magruder.
Flock Safety has guardrails regarding data collected by ALPRs, referring to how long data is saved and who can access it. Currently, APD has a 30-day data retention period, meaning data is automatically deleted after 30 days unless needed for an active investigation.
APD will be moving to a 7-day retention period following updates to Flock Safety's privacy recommendations. APD has also opted to only share collected data with other agencies within Ohio after receiving approval from within in the police department.
According to The Ohio Newsroom, Flock’s ALPR cameras have raised concerns statewide about the security and accessibility of data. Specifically, the use of data for immigration enforcement. Magruder said APD recognizes those concerns, but can assure the Athens community that searches of the kind are not permitted.
However, a bill expected to be introduced by Ohio Rep. Levi Dean, R-Xenia, would put limits on how government entities may install and access surveillance cameras and ALPR-captured data.
The proposed Ohio Freedom from Mass Surveillance Act would prohibit the government from deploying mass surveillance technology, as well as require government entities to obtain a search warrant before accessing data. The bill would also prohibit the selling of surveillance data.
“Flock cameras and automatic license plate readers can be valuable tools, but a tool that can track the movements of innocent Americans can also be abused in the wrong hands,” Dean wrote in a press release.
If that legislation passes, it would affect the use of Flock cameras in Athens, mandating a search warrant in cases involving ALPR data.
“The Fourth Amendment was written long before this technology existed, but the principle has not changed,” Dean wrote. “Government power must have limits.”
Violation of the Fourth Amendment, which protects against unlawful searches and seizures, is of particular concern for many people who oppose the use of Flock cameras. Many claim it is a violation of privacy rights enshrined in the amendment.
Young Americans for Liberty, a national libertarian organization focused on student activism, is currently advocating for the ban of Flock cameras under the Fourth Amendment. On Sept. 10, YAL set up a table on College Green, recruiting petition signatures for the ban. The organization has plans to establish a chapter at Ohio University.
AJ Alexander, the YAL Ohio activism coordinator and the Ohio State University chapter president, was one of two representatives at the table. Alexander echoed the idea that the technology violates privacy rights.
“It changes how you act,” Alexander said. “You don’t feel like you have any more privacy, and that is also just straight-up Fourth Amendment violation.”
APD’s current contract with Flock expires in February 2027. Magruder said he hopes to make a decision about whether to continue with Flock by the end of the year.
“I’m discussing with officers if this is something we want to continue or if we want to try to appropriate the money somewhere else,” Magruder said.
