No intruders allowed at the Elk Grove City Council club?
The short version: ElkGroveNews flags incumbents bankrolling a council ally's reelection — a reminder that the same officials guarding their political club also control Elk Grove's Flock ALPR network.
Our Take
Credit to ElkGroveNews for digging into the money trail behind Sergio Robles' reelection bid and the cozy financial backing from Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen and Councilman Rod Brewer. Local political machines protecting their own isn't new, but the throwaway line about Flock cameras catching any 'intruders' lands harder than it probably intended. These are the same elected officials who vote on surveillance contracts, oversee police budgets, and decide how much transparency residents get about automated license plate readers scanning their daily commutes.
When incumbents treat city council like a private club worth defending with campaign cash, it's worth asking who else they're comfortable keeping a close eye on — and who's watching the watchers. Flock Safety's ALPR network wasn't built to settle local political scores, but it exists because councils like Elk Grove's approved it, often with minimal public debate about retention policies, data sharing, or audit trails. Entrenched power and unchecked surveillance tech tend to go hand in hand.
If you're in Elk Grove or anywhere else wondering how many of these cameras are already watching your block, check our camera map. And if you want to push back on how your city council handles ALPR contracts and oversight, our take-action page has concrete steps to get started.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of ElkGroveNews, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.