'DeFlock' vandalism hits Wichita: License plate readers severed in Sedgwick County
The short version: A Flock Safety ALPR camera in Sedgwick County was cut down and tagged with an anti-surveillance sign, as reported by 12 News — but vandalism isn't the same as documentation.
Our Take
12 News is reporting that a Flock Safety license plate reader in Wichita was severed and left with a sign demanding officials "ban all government surveillance." Whoever did it borrowed our name, but let's be clear: DeFlock the USA is a documentation project, not a demolition crew. We map these cameras so the public can see exactly how dense and how unaccountable this surveillance net has become — not so people destroy evidence of it.
That said, the frustration behind this stunt is familiar. Sedgwick County residents, like people in hundreds of other jurisdictions, often had no real public debate before Flock hardware went up on their streets. When there's no meaningful off-ramp — no city council vote, no opt-out, no sunset clause — some people conclude the only leverage left is a pair of bolt cutters. That's not a strategy we endorse, but it's a symptom worth naming: communities feel locked out of decisions about a dragnet that logs their movements, stores the data, and shares it across agencies with little oversight.
The better fight is public pressure through records requests, city council meetings, and visibility. Check our camera map to see what's watching your own neighborhood, and hit take action for ways to push back that don't end with a police report and a hardware replacement bill.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of 12 News, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.