Updated
Updated · WLWT Cincinnati · Aug 24
Independence Removes All Flock Cameras as 2 Nearby Cities Also Drop License Plate Readers
Updated
Updated · WLWT Cincinnati · Aug 24

Independence Removes All Flock Cameras as 2 Nearby Cities Also Drop License Plate Readers

3 articles · Updated · WLWT Cincinnati · Aug 24

Summary

  • Independence said all Flock license plate reader cameras will be removed immediately after Mayor Chris Reinersman cited overwhelming public opposition following a city council meeting last Monday.
  • Reinersman said he still supports the cameras and believes they aided police without causing privacy abuses, but added that residents and some council members opposed keeping the system.
  • Independence becomes the latest Northern Kentucky jurisdiction to abandon Flock cameras after Fort Mitchell removed them last week and Newport ended its program last month; Oxford also voted last week to end its program.
  • Flock has already changed its policies amid the backlash, cutting default data retention to 7 days from 30 and requiring misuse detection for every customer.

Insights

Will the removal of license plate readers make residents safer from surveillance but more vulnerable to local crime?
What happens to the taxpayer money already spent on the uninstalled cameras now that the program is abruptly canceled?
How can residents verify that their previously captured driving data is permanently deleted after the cameras are taken down?