Staunton Police Chief: Flock Safety cameras no longer accessible to officers

Officers with the Staunton Police Department no longer have access to Flock Safety cameras to assist in investigations.

The city announced plans approximately one month ago to cancel its contract with the automated license-plate reader, or ALPR, technology company.

While citizens were vocal in their opposition to the use of cameras, Police Chief Jim Williams said the decision was due to a disagreement in philosophy with the company’s CEO.

An email sent from Flock Safety CEO Garrett Langley to the Staunton PD said in part that Flock and law enforcement agencies they partner with were “under coordinated attack.”

Chief Williams told the CEO in an email reply that he believed the actions of citizens expressing their opposition to the cameras was not an attack but “democracy in action.”

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ICYMI

• Staunton to cancel Flock Safety camera contract, citing issues with ideology of CEO
• Aaron Barmer: Flock camera removal is victory for all people in Staunton

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Staunton resident Deborah Kushner was among those who were pressuring Staunton to remove the cameras. She believes that citizens played a major role in the decision: speaking at City Council meetings, sending emails, putting up yards signs and gathering signatures for petitions.

“I appreciate Chief Jim Williams’ correspondence with Flock that recognizes the importance of public scrutiny and pushback that is ‘democracy in action,” Kushner told AFP. “It’s beholden on each and all of us to rise to meet the increasing need for involvement and action.

“The city was remiss in not including residents from the beginning of their discussions about surveillance cameras.”

“Mass surveillance can be masked to look friendly with glossy marketing that promises to eradicate crime, but Flock’s early ties with Palantir and its new partnering with Ring and Amazon Sidewalk betrays its significant dark side that leaks data to ICE, and allegiance to the Washington regime that demonizes ever-increasing numbers of our neighbors,” Kushner said.

No date has been set for removal of the cameras, according to Williams. However the contract was cancelled in December, and the PD was recently notified that the agreement was terminated. The contract was originally set to run through the fall of 2026.

“Our officers no longer have access to the ALPRs,” Williams said. “At this time, we are not actively exploring other stationary ALPR systems.”

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