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The Los Angeles Police Department letting its multi‑year deal with Flock Safety expire is the latest sign that America’s debate over surveillance has tilted from sensible oversight to knee‑jerk panic. LAPD officials say they want stronger privacy and data protections before they rejoin. That sounds reasonable on the surface — until you remember what this tool actually does for public safety.
Why LAPD paused Flock: civil‑liberties concerns
Dean Gialamas, the LAPD’s chief information officer, said the contract was not renewed because of “serious concerns around civil liberties and civil rights issues, particularly around privacy and the data that is being collected.” Cities have every right to demand stronger rules. But letting a useful tool lapse rather than fixing the rules is an odd answer to a policy problem — and it hands criminals a little victory lap.
Flock works — and the misuse is real but limited
Flock says its network includes roughly 120,000 cameras and that the system has supported more than a million investigations. Police departments credit license‑plate readers with finding missing people, tracking violent suspects, and solving shootings and kidnappings. The Washington Post exposed bad actors — at least 50 officers accused or charged with improper searches — and those officers deserve punishment. But fifty rogue users among tens of thousands of officers and hundreds of thousands of cameras is misuse to be rooted out, not a reason to dismantle the whole tool.
Fixes are possible — and already underway
Flock’s CEO Garrett Langley publicly apologized and has proposed changes: shorter retention windows, automatic suspension flags for suspicious queries, and better auditing. Independent projects like “Have I Been Flocked?” are forcing transparency by aggregating audit logs released under public records. These are the kinds of fixes smart cities should welcome. Strengthen oversight, require audits, impose clear penalties for misuse — then keep the cameras working for cops who need leads to catch real criminals.
A common‑sense path forward
Local governments should renegotiate contracts to lock in privacy protections, independent audits, and strict penalties for misuse. Lawmakers can set statewide standards so one mayor’s political panic doesn’t undo investigative tools across a region. And citizens should demand both safety and accountability — not a choice between “Big Brother” paranoia and handing the streets back to wrongdoers. LAPD’s move can be an opportunity to get the rules right. Let’s fix the contract, not the crime‑fighting toolbox.
