Overview
- The LAPD has halted its agreement with Flock Safety and will stop using the company’s pole-mounted cameras as contract talks continue.
- The dispute centers on data ownership and security with the LAPD seeking explicit terms about who controls footage and what happens to it after collection.
- City leaders and the police have demanded penalties if vendor data is shared with outside agencies that do not follow local or state law, including requests tied to federal immigration enforcement.
- Flock supplies only a portion of the LAPD’s automated license-plate reader network and the department relies on about 1,500 car-mounted readers plus roughly 160 pole cameras that log plate reads for stolen-vehicle alerts and warrant checks.
- Civil-rights groups have sued for records about the program and audits in other places have found improper searches, which has pushed more cities and police boards to pause or renegotiate vendor contracts and could reshape local surveillance rules.