Colorado lawsuit questions legality of police vehicle tracking camera network.
A Colorado man has filed a lawsuit against the Boulder Police Department, claiming that a surveillance program involving a network of license plate reader cameras is being used in a way that violates residents’ privacy rights. The case was brought by Will Freeman, who runs a website called Deflock that tracks the locations of Flock Safety cameras throughout the U.S. Freeman has claimed Boulder officials have created a system that gathers large amounts of information about drivers without proper safeguards or legal justification.
At the center of the lawsuit are 31 Flock Safety cameras installed throughout the city as part of a law enforcement surveillance program. These cameras automatically capture license plate information and can help law enforcement track vehicle movements. Police departments across the country have increasingly adopted the technology, saying it helps solve crimes, recover stolen vehicles, and locate missing people. The court filing argues that the camera network goes beyond those purposes and instead collects information on large numbers of people who are not suspected of any wrongdoing. According to the complaint, the system allows authorities to randomly gather information about where residents travel, how often they visit certain places, and other patterns in their daily routines.
The lawsuit claims that Boulder police put the camera network in place without establishing enough protections for personal privacy. It also argues that collecting and storing information about drivers without a warrant or a specific reason, which conflicts with protections found in Colorado’s constitution. Freeman’s website maintains a map showing camera locations across the nation, and according to information on the site, there are more than 100,000 Flock cameras in operation.
One issue raised in the lawsuit involves access to data collected by the cameras. Freeman said he requested information gathered about his own vehicle but was denied access. He argues that residents often do not fully understand how much information can be collected and stored through these systems. The complaint states that the technology can build a detailed picture of a person’s daily activities. By recording where vehicles appear over time, it can potentially reveal commuting habits, visits to businesses, attendance at events, and other routine movements.
Police officials reported that the cameras have aided their crime-stopping efforts tremendously, with vehicle thefts dropping by more than 34 percent since the Flock cameras were first introduced. Supporters of license plate reader systems also often cite similar crime-fighting benefits in defending their use.
Flock Safety strongly disagrees with the claims made in the lawsuit. A company spokesperson said courts around the country have repeatedly upheld the legality of automated license plate reader systems anytime they’re called into question. The company also stated that local agencies control their own data and determine policies regarding access, retention, and sharing under applicable laws.
Civil rights attorney Andy McNulty, who represents Freeman, said the case seeks a court ruling that could influence how other cities approach similar technology. If successful, the lawsuit could influence legal debates about privacy rights and automated surveillance systems in Colorado, and possibly in other areas of the U.S., moving forward.
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