Council Eyes Police Plate Camera Vote
Town Council
On April 30th, Barnstable councilors signaled they will move a formal vote on the town’s use of Flock automated license plate readers after a workshop Wednesday raised civil liberties and contract concerns.
Why it matters: The cameras have helped close drug, theft and missing-person cases but public commenters expressed concerns and several councilors say the town has no signed contract guaranteeing how the data is used or stored.
By the numbers:
Barnstable runs 4 Flock readers across roughly 450 miles of town road.
Those four cameras read about 2.2 million plates in March which led to 111 investigative searches.
Captured data is held for 30 days before being overwritten.
Driving the news: Detective Sgt. Kevin Conley, joined by Cape & Islands District Attorney Robert Galibois, walked councilors through how the cameras work, citing convictions in a Hyannis home invasion, a kidnapping, and a fentanyl trafficking case (Commonwealth v. McCarthy) that the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court upheld six years ago.
What they’re saying: Sgt. Conley said the department has already disabled federal sharing, nationwide search and immigration-related queries, and called the tool essential for locating people in mental health crises.
Yes, but:
Councilor Seth Burdick said the town’s agreement with Flock functions as a terms-of-service, allowing the company to change them unilaterally, and that a recent update shifted the choice of law to Georgia.
Councilor Betty Ludtke objected to Flock even offering a “reproductive case searches” filter as a setting, calling the system “1984” and saying she wants the cameras removed.
Councilor Barry Sheingold questioned the lack of a warrant requirement, saying an investigator alone decides what counts as a legitimate law enforcement purpose.
The other side: First Assistant Town Attorney Tom LaRosa said Flock’s February terms are tighter than the prior version on data destruction, but confirmed the Georgia choice-of-law clause needs to be renegotiated.
What’s next: Council President Craig Tamash directed Councilor Ludtke to draft a formal article with the town attorney to put the cameras on a future agenda for an up-or-down vote.