Carrollton expands Flock camera program despite privacy concerns
The short version: Carrollton locks in a 3-year Flock ALPR contract despite resident pushback, showing how 'temporary' surveillance programs become permanent infrastructure.
Our Take
CBS19's report on Carrollton is a familiar script by now: residents show up, raise real concerns about privacy and data retention, city council listens politely, and then votes to expand the camera network anyway. Three years is a long commitment for a technology that's barely been on the books in most towns for half that long — and it locks in Flock's revenue stream while making it that much harder for a future council to walk it back.
What rarely gets asked in these meetings is the basic accountability question: who actually audits the search logs, how long is data kept, and what happens when an officer runs a plate for personal reasons instead of an active investigation? "Public safety" gets repeated like a mantra, but the departments deploying these cameras almost never publish hard numbers showing the systems solve more crime than they simply surveil innocent people driving through town. Carrollton residents deserve better than a three-year leap of faith.
This is playing out block by block across the country, which is exactly why we track it. Check our map to see if Flock cameras are already logging your daily drive, and if you want to push back at your next council meeting, our take-action page has the tools to get started. Credit to CBS19 for putting the public pushback on camera.
This is DeFlock The USA’s original commentary. The video above is the work of CBS19, published on YouTube — full credit to the creator.