By SUE SUCHYTA
Sunday Times Newspapers
LINCOLN PARK – The city of Lincoln Park has placed hoods on its remaining Flock cameras, and will soon decide their future use in the city.
During the Sept. 28 city council meeting, Mayor Maureen Tobin said that Flock cameras present serious concerns about privacy rights and constitutional violations. The mayor and the city council then unanimously passed a resolution shrouding the Flock cameras that are under the immediate control of the city.
“Flock cameras are being vandalized throughout the community, creating additional operational cost,” she said. “Therefore, be it resolved that the mayor and city council of the city of Lincoln Park direct the immediate shrouding and hooding of any operational cameras under the jurisdiction of the city.”
Flock cameras are automated license plate readers manufactured by Flock Safety, which collects vehicle data along roadways to help law enforcement and private entities address crime.
The data, which includes license plates, vehicle characteristics, date and time, is downloaded into a database, creating a searchable trail.
The system can send out real-time alerts for stolen vehicles and for Amber Alerts to law enforcement agencies.
The cameras are not currently designed to perform facial recognition.
Civil rights organizations have said the surveillance is done without warrants.
Tobin said the city will determine the feasibility of continuing to replace damaged Flock cameras.
“I would like to note that four cameras are down, three more went down this weekend, we have 24 total cameras, 17 are working, and all 17 of them will be hooded as of tomorrow,” she said. “So, none of them will be operational until this goes before the Public Safety Commission and the C.I.C.”
Lincoln Park’s C.I.C. is the Community Improvement Commission.
Tobin said the commissions’ decisions will then come before the city council for a final decision in two to three months.
Police Chief Scott Lavis said the city is in the third year of a five-year contract with Flock Safety, which expires in 2028.