May 6, 2026, Virtual Public Forum on Automated License Plate Readers
The short version: L.A. County's Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission is holding a virtual public forum on ALPRs — a rare chance for residents to put LASD's plate-reader program on record.
Our Take
Credit where it's due: the Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission for L.A. County is doing something most agencies avoid — actually asking the public what they think about automated license plate readers before rubber-stamping more of them. A virtual forum isn't a policy change, but it's a crack in the door, and it's one of the few moments where residents can force questions about retention periods, data-sharing agreements, and who else gets to query LASD's plate data onto the public record.
These forums matter because ALPR programs almost never get built with this kind of scrutiny. Vendors like Flock Safety pitch cameras to city councils and sheriffs as a low-friction crime-fighting tool, and by the time anyone asks about audit logs or ICE data-sharing, the network is already blanketing the county. L.A. County has hundreds of these cameras, and a commission hearing is exactly the venue where residents can ask who's watching the watchers — and get an answer that isn't just a vendor talking point.
If you're in L.A. County, this is worth showing up for, even virtually. Check our camera map to see what's already deployed near you before the forum, and use our take-action guide to turn public comment into something more than a formality.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission, L.A. County, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.