Kenner police search for person who damaged Flock camera

Our Take

WWLTV's report out of Kenner has local police treating a damaged Flock Safety camera like a crime scene, but the real story is the subtext: a growing number of everyday people are fed up enough with unaccountable license plate readers that someone apparently decided to take matters into their own hands. We don't endorse vandalism, but we understand the frustration. These cameras were installed with little public debate, track every passing vehicle regardless of suspicion, and the data often ends up shared across jurisdictions and even with federal agencies, far outside the simple "find the bad guy" pitch police departments use to sell them.

What's telling is that the police response centers entirely on protecting the hardware, not on addressing why residents might be distrustful of a camera network that quietly logs their movements. Kenner isn't unique — this is playing out in towns across the country as Flock's footprint expands with little independent oversight or sunset clauses. Credit to WWLTV for putting a local lens on a national pattern: communities are starting to push back, sometimes through public comment, sometimes through lawsuits, and apparently sometimes with their own two hands.

If you want a lawful way to push back, start by finding out how many of these cameras are already watching your own neighborhood on our map, then use our take-action guide to raise the issue at your next city council meeting before frustration boils over into headlines like this one.