Brady Potter
The short version: A New Hanover County resident's public comment on Flock ALPR cameras, documented by DeFlockILM, shows local pushback on surveillance spending and oversight is spreading.
Our Take
Credit to DeFlockILM for getting a camera into the room where it matters: a county commissioners meeting. Public comment is one of the few remaining levers ordinary people have over how their local government spends money and deploys surveillance tech, and Brady Potter using that three-minute window to question New Hanover County's Flock network is exactly the kind of grassroots accountability this fight needs. These meetings are usually sparsely attended and barely covered, which is precisely why departments and vendors count on them staying quiet.
What's happening in New Hanover County is not unique — it's the same pattern playing out in county after county nationwide: a contract gets signed, cameras go up, and only later do residents start asking who approved it, what the data retention policy looks like, and whether anyone is auditing who gets to query the system. Public comment is often the first moment that friction surfaces, and it's worth watching whether commissioners actually respond with real answers or just a polite nod before moving to the next agenda item.
If you live near New Hanover County or anywhere else with Flock infrastructure, check our camera map to see what's been documented near you, and if you want to push your own local government the way this resident did, our take-action page has the tools to help you prep for that mic.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of DeFlockILM, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.