Clinton weighs Flock amid county debate
As Anderson County officials consider the future of Flock cameras, Clinton continues to examine its own use of the license plate readers, but has made no changes to the program.
The cameras have generated debate at multiple Clinton City Council meetings, with Police Chief Jim Campbell providing additional details Aug. 24 about how the city uses the technology and safeguards the information it collects.
The discussion has taken on broader significance as Anderson County officials wrestle with many of the same questions surrounding privacy, data sharing and the cameras’ value as a law enforcement tool.
Anderson County held a public hearing on Flock cameras Sept. 10, with 31 residents speaking against their use.
County Mayor Terry Frank said after the hearing that she wants the county to end or pause its use of the cameras while questions surrounding the technology and policies governing it are addressed.
Clinton, meanwhile, continues to operate eight Flock cameras.
Four are positioned near entrances to the city and record license plate information from vehicles entering Clinton, Campbell said. The cameras photograph vehicles from the rear and face inward toward the city.
The other four cameras are positioned near Clinton schools.
Campbell has defended the cameras as useful law enforcement tools, but has also acknowledged that the Police Department ultimately must follow the direction of the city and maintain the public’s trust.
“We only police to the degree that the community public tells us,” Campbell told the council Aug. 24. “If this creates such a divide, I don’t want them. There’s impact with that, but our community has to trust us.”
Campbell said Clinton’s Flock program began in 2020.
The cameras are motion-activated and take photographs of the backs of vehicles, including their license plates, he said.
“There might be a second or two of some video capability,” Campbell said. “I’m not sure. I’ve heard that. But all we get is a still picture.”
Campbell said Clinton uses Flock Falcon cameras that do not have Bluetooth capability. The data is stored temporarily in the cloud on Amazon servers.
“The data is ours,” he said. “I know no reason at this point to know otherwise. At some point, if something comes to light, then that’s a whole different point to consider.”
The city does, however, share data with other law enforcement agencies through a network, Campbell said.
He said the encrypted data stored on Amazon servers had never been breached. Campbell also said Flock had told him the company does not publish or distribute logs from the Clinton Police Department or other agencies.
Clinton has 1,515 other law enforcement agencies in its network with which it can share data, Campbell said. He said he has worked cases that involved tracking vehicles in other states.
Officers and dispatchers must have authorization to search license plate information, he said, and must undergo training and background checks before receiving access.
Improperly disseminating the information could lead to prosecution, Campbell said, noting that such a case has occurred in Nashville. Misuse also could be grounds for termination from the Police Department or dispatch, he said.
While some residents have questioned the cameras and the potential for misuse of information, others have urged the city to retain them as a public safety tool.
“I think it’s great to have a robust conversation about the cameras on both sides,” said Scott Rhea, fiscal services director for Clinton City Schools, who emphasized that he was speaking as a parent and not on behalf of the school system.
Rhea said the city should focus on finding the safest option for children, school staff, residents and police. If the Flock cameras help keep those groups safe, he supports their use.
“That being said, we can always make them better,” Rhea said. “But let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater.”
Rhea compared potential misuse of Flock cameras with credit card fraud, saying misuse of credit cards has not resulted in banning them.
Clinton resident Joe Walker also argued that misuse of Flock data by individuals does not necessarily mean the city should stop using the cameras.
He cited a case in which Flock cameras were used to track a sex offender.
“If we got rid of politicians just because they were dirty or did something wrong, the government wouldn’t run,” Walker said. “The same thing with Flock. You got to look at the good and the bad.”
Walker noted that cameras are already common along public rights of way, including Tennessee Department of Transportation cameras and private residential security cameras.
He said, however, that he would be open to guidelines governing the use of Flock cameras.
