Author: Sarah Lapidus, Arizona Republic
Some of South Tucson’s foremost elected leaders reacted strongly against the police department when law enforcement officials inked a one-year contract with Flock Safety for automated license plate reader cameras.
The mayor and leaders on the city council voiced concerns about the potential for improper use of the system’s data collected on community members and directed city staff to look into how to terminate the contract ahead of the next meeting.
Then came the feedback from residents.
South Tucsonans on Nov. 18 filled the council chambers to call on the council to keep the license plate readers as a tool for their under-resourced police department to help rid the city of crime and drug use.
Sandra Calkins, the principal at Mission View Elementary School, explained the community’s fear of crime and drug use and the impact it was having on her school. She said the elementary school saw a drop in enrollment this year because of crime in the area. If this trend continues, Calkins said it could lead to the school’s closure after being in the community for more than 100 years.
“I had several families withdraw their children after only the first day of school. After dropping off their children, they drove down Sixth Avenue and saw the streets overrun with drug users and criminal activity. They did not feel safe leaving their children at school, Calkins said.
She noted that families embraced Flock cameras for school safety, and elected officials should too.
What do Flock cameras do?
Flock’s automated license plate recognition software collects details and the movement of vehicles and stores them on the cloud, an online storage space. Flock uses machine learning to identify a range of details of vehicles like the make, body type, whether it is missing a plate and other identifiers, like window stickers. Flock provides searchable data and real-time alerts to help law enforcement solve crimes quickly without having to sift through videos.
Raul Navarro, commander of South Tucson’s police department, said the automated license plate readers and cameras capture data from every passing car. The system automatically runs its national and state databases checking for stolen vehicles, missing and wanted persons, as well as Amber, Silver and Blue Alerts.
Navarro said since the license plate readers and cameras went live in August, they have helped law enforcement make arrests in several cases.
According to 404 media, Flock’s license plate reader cameras are in 5,000 communities around the U.S.
City Attorney Jon Paladini said the city owns the data that Flock collects. Flock can access the data if it’s ordered to by a court. But he noted that a court order would likely go to South Tucson to access the data. Flock can also access the data if they believe it is being misused or if there is a computer bug the company needs to fix.
City councilmembers postpone decision to cancel Flock contract
South Tucson Mayor Roxanna Valenzuela and several council members spoke about their concerns about who could potentially access the data from the cameras at a Nov. 4 meeting. They said they worried the data could be used by federal immigration officials to harm residents. The city has a poverty level of 34% and a population of about 4,600 people, which is 76% Hispanic.
“We will make a decision by the next council meeting, but I think this decision here is clear. We do not want Flock in South Tucson,” Valenzuela said at the city’s Nov. 4 meeting.
At the following meeting on Nov. 18, the city council changed course. It was set to cancel the contract, which included five automated license plate cameras and five surveillance cameras for $18,500.
But the community came out in ardent support of the cameras to help the city, which some residents say is overrun with crime and drugs. The license plate readers also faced opposition, primarily from people who lived outside the city.
People who opposed the contract with Flock said they were concerned these cameras will be weaponized and harm the South Tucson community.
“Ring and Flock have joined forces once more to expand law enforcement surveillance networks,” said Glenda Avalos, who lives outside of South Tucson, at the Nov. 4 meeting. She noted that while she is not a resident, she spends most of her time in city limits.
“In a time when we see food being weaponized and our government being complicit in such acts, all the struggles that our community are faced with … anything at any given time could be weaponized,” Avalos said.
But many residents who spoke at the meeting did not express concern about the data and supported the use of these cameras to help make their community safer.
One speaker reminded the council that they represent almost 5,000 people, and should vote on what the majority wants, and not on what their own opinions are.
Another Flock supporter was Arlene Lopez, who said she has lived in South Tucson all her life. She reiterated that the cameras have helped police in the short amount of time they have been installed and criticized the organized opposition noting they were from outside of South Tucson. She was critical that the main opposition was from people who lived outside the city.
People who spoke at the call-to-the-audience were asked to say if they were a resident of South Tucson or a non-resident.
“As a concerned citizen, I wanted more information, so I attended the meeting to listen and learn. However, when I showed up, there were protesters who weren’t even residents of South Tucson voicing their opposition during call-to-the-audience,” she said.
She added that the data belongs to South Tucson police department and is not shared with immigration officials unless there is a court order. As she left the podium, she gave a stern look at the front row of people protesting Flock cameras.
Concerns of Flock cameras’ use in immigration raids
The University of Arizona has come under fire for using Flock cameras located on posts in public areas around campus, without notifying the public, said social justice group Desert Rising Tucson. The group criticized the university for installing Flock cameras on public thoroughfares, not private property.
University of Arizona officials have said the system has not been used for immigration enforcement and said the use of the automated license plate system helps maintain safety on campus.
“Operated under established protocols that comply with privacy laws and regulations, records are deleted after 30 days. Third-party access to the data is prohibited without prior approval from UAPD or a court order,” said Chris Olson, chief of the university’s police department.
Critics of the automated license plate readers have noted instances of misuse of the data, they also pointed out that evidence fails to show the automated license plate readers reduce crime.
While the company says its license plate readers help deter crime, critics say they differ from other surveillance equipment because they collect personal data. An investigation by 404 media found Flock safety data had been accessed by immigration officials.
What did South Tucson decide?
It’s this lack of privacy and control of who can access the data that worried South Tucson councilmembers.
Councilor Brian Flagg said he agreed with residents concerned about crime, but noted the cameras are more about surveillance than crime fighting. He moved to cancel the contract.
Councilors Dulce Jimenez and Melissa Brown-Dominguez voiced their opposition to removing the cameras immediately after hearing the community speak out. Brown-Dominguez said if a suitable alternative is found in the future, then that option should be considered based on the recommendation of public safety leadership.
Valenzuela and Acting Mayor Pablo Robles remained skeptical. Robles said he remained concerned about what could happen if the definition of who is a criminal changes.
“I have to think about the worst-case scenario for both and for me currently, the worst-case scenario is being wrong about how it wouldn’t be used against our community by the federal government,” Robles said.
He pointed to anti-immigration law Senate Bill 1070, which critics say invite racial profiling. He also pointed to the Patriot Act, that passed after the Sept.11, 2001 terrorist attacks and expanded the search and surveillance powers of federal law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
Valenzuela and the council directed staff to come back after the new year with alternative camera solutions to potentially replace the Flock license plate readers in the future.
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