Some complain Scottsdale residents are being tracked wherever they go – be it to church, the grocery store or an adult entertainment facility.
Critics of police technology say “cop cams” – not body cameras worn by police, but “eyes in the sky” positioned at intersections and other public areas – are out of control.
The debate centers on Flock Safety, makers of a license-plate reader program used by hundreds of law enforcement agencies, including the Scottsdale Police Department. The Atlanta-based company says its “license plate recognition cameras can be placed almost anywhere to capture detailed data about license plates and vehicles used to commit crimes, enabling quick and efficient action.”
Indeed, Scottsdale technicians and detectives used Flock to take down a murder suspect, “crime tourists” and an armed car thief.
Even so, the program has a flock of critics.
One who emailed the Progress had a request.
Though he has a website called unflockscottsdale.com, and has been gathering petitions of support to ban the Flock system in Scottsdale, he asked that his name not be published.
“The Flock CEO has stated that some people opposing Flock are terrorists and part of Antifa – neither of which I am – which has me concerned about my personal safety.”
This is hardly just local grumblings, as the American Civil Liberties Union also has problems with Flock.
“The cloud automatic license plate reader company Flock is building a dangerous nationwide mass-surveillance infrastructure, as we have been pointing out for several years now,” according to the ACLU’s website.
“The problem with mass surveillance is that it always expands beyond the uses for which it is initially justified — and sure enough, Flock’s system is undergoing insidious expansion across multiple dimensions …”
The ACLU complains Flock “allows police to do nationwide searches of the resulting database, giving even the smallest-town police chief access to an enormously powerful driver-surveillance tool.”
The system is secure, the company insists:
“Flock Safety is dedicated to ensuring our customers’ privacy by safeguarding all data and information collected through our devices.”
Maybe, but …
According to an Aug. 17, 2024, story in the Wichita Eagle: “A Sedgwick, Kansas, police chief used Flock Safety license plate readers to track his ex-girlfriend and her new boyfriend’s vehicles 228 times over four-plus years.”
While that case is an outlier, the “deflock” group (deflock.me) complains Flock’s cameras “collect data on millions of vehicles regardless of whether the driver is suspected of a crime.
“These systems are marketed as indispensable tools to fight crime, but they ignore the powerful tools police already have to track criminals, such as cell phone location data, creating a loophole that doesn’t require a warrant.”
On a November podcast, Flock Safety founder and CEO Garrett Langley said he respected the ACLU’s right to criticize his company during “reasonable debates” on privacy issues.
But he referred to the anti-surveillance project DeFlock as a “terroristic organization” that is “closer to Antifa than anything else.”
Cop cams
Cameras used by local police were hashed over at two November City Council meetings.
Along with neighbors Tempe, Paradise Valley and Phoenix, Scottsdale is watching you at select intersections.
“The city of Scottsdale has used photo enforcement technology since 1996 to help reduce red-light running and speeding,” SPD’s website notes.
On Nov. 3, SPD Chief Joe LeDuc gave a presentation on “Photo Enforcement in Scottsdale.”
LeDuc said SPD’s 15 intersection cameras have led to “crash reduction” and “cost efficiency.”
LeDuc showed video of a driver blowing through a Frank Lloyd Wright/Greenway red light at 130 mph.
Councilman Adam Kwasman, for one, was not buying the presentation.
“I’m against photo radar because I think it’s unconstitutional,” Kwasman said.
“It violates the Sixth Amendment.”
Councilwoman Mary McAllen tried to bring up Flock cameras at the Nov. 3 meeting.
“I’ve received probably over 100 emails about it,” she said.
Though she was overruled, as the topic was not on the agenda, Flock was the focus of attention two weeks later.
The Nov. 17 Scottsdale City Council consent agenda item seemed innocuous, if not mundane:
“Approve the 2026 legislative agenda and authorize the city’s registered lobbyists to take the necessary actions to communicate the city’s positions on these matters …”
But, since a few people wanted to express their views, the item was pulled off the consent agenda – a clump of items (13, on this night) – that are voted on as a group, with no individual presentations or discussion.
Sara Sparman, the city’s government relations manager, gave a presentation highlighting Scottsdale’s positions on water, transportation, finance and livability, among others.
What got the attention of some was a bullet point listed under “public safety”:
“Promote the responsible and transparent use of emerging technologies, including Real Time Crime Centers, drones as first responders, license plate readers, photo radar, and artificial intelligence.”
Eric Fowler, who identified himself as the chair of the Maricopa County Libertarian Party, called that a flock of misinformation.
Fowler derided Flock as “AI mass surveillance network, a system that this council never voted on, never held a hearing about, and apparently never knew existed.”
He said he reviewed documents and failed to find “a single mention of Flock or license plate reader in your agendas or minutes.
“So how did we get 60-plus surveillance cameras without democratic oversight? This isn’t just a bad process, it’s unconstitutional.”
Calling the Flock system “mass surveillance of innocent people without warrants,” Fowler concluded:
“I’m demanding that you terminate this contract immediately.”
He was followed by fellow Flock-hater Vincent La, who said he works in information technology.
“The problem with Flock is that … this AI stuff has come really, really fast, and Congress doesn’t act very fast. So I think this has created a huge gap in state laws and federal laws.”
Merissa Hamilton also spoke against the Flock program.
“I have great concerns about this, and I think that instead of saying that to promote the responsible and transparent use of these license plate readers and photo radar, that that’s kind of an oxymoron, there is no way to have responsible or transparent use of these devices.”
None of the city’s seven elected officials directly addressed the concerns raised by those three.
But City Manager Greg Caton hinted “Flock … or license plate readers could certainly come up at the legislature.”
The normally even keel Caton grew passionate as he proclaimed the Scottsdale Police Department is on “the cutting edge” of AI and technology.
“I agree with the city manager,” Councilman Barry Graham chimed in. “Our police are on the cutting edge. I mean, everybody’s envious about our police – they’re on the front lines of technology and adopting tools to keep us safe.
“And I hope they keep pushing it.”
Even so, Graham advocated for revising the motion.
He urged keeping most of the Public Safety section (“The city of Scottsdale advances public safety and criminal justice as a collaborative partner, endorsing initiatives that protect residents, enhance operation, integrity and effectiveness, and promote trust and wellbeing in the community”).
But his motion was to delete the wording “to promote the responsible and transparent use of emerging technologies.”
The motion carried 5-2, with Mayor Lisa Borowsky and representatives Jan Dubauskas, Adam Kwasman and Kathy Littlefield opposed.
Councilwomen Mary McAllen – whose alternate motion of keeping the language in failed – and Solange Whitehead opposed Graham’s motion.
High-profile cases
SPD seemed to hit the law enforcement jackpot with cop cams on several occasions over the last two years.
The police department’s Real Time Crime Center is tucked inside the Via Linda Police Station. Giant screens on the wall and dozens of smaller monitors show live traffic at busy intersections, license plate readers, maps with locations of officers and drone video – with the pilots here controlling launches and flights across the city.
On Feb. 17, 2024, Raad Almansoori – a suspect in a New York City murder case – allegedly stabbed a woman in Surprise. He later told police he intended to rape and murder her, according to court documents.
Almansoori also told detectives he planned to find a victim to rape and murder at the Fashion Square Mall.
The following day, Almansoori allegedly followed an 18-year-old woman into a McDonald’s bathroom, where he stabbed her before fleeing, stealing a car from the parking lot.
After an alert was sent out, SPD’s Flock system “pinged” the stolen car to a Scottsdale Fashion Square parking lot. Officers raced to the parking lot and arrested Almansoori.
A few weeks later, a license-plate reader flagged a car reported as stolen heading north on Scottsdale Road.
A Real Time Crime Center technician alerted nearby officers, who followed the car through rush-hour traffic to Cactus Road. Kathy Steinke switched her view to a traffic camera as the driver of the stolen car stopped at a red light.
“He’s got a gun!” Steinke called over the radio – perhaps a half-second before the driver jumped from the car and started firing at the two police cars behind him.
Warned, the cops quickly shot back, killing the man.
Just before Memorial Day last year, Scottsdale Police received information from Burbank Police about a tourist-gang group from Colombia that had allegedly committed burglaries there could be headed to Arizona.
Burbank sent along vehicle descriptions and license plates.
A police spokesman said Scottsdale Police found the vehicles “through investigative means.”
After tracking the cars to the Old Town short-term rental, Scottsdale detectives set up surveillance, later arresting a group of seven “crime tourists.”
Those high-profile cases apparently have not impressed the likes of unflockscottsdale.com.
“What makes Flock LPRs (license-plate readers) especially alarming is its vast information-sharing system: Flock LPR data can be pooled from law enforcement agencies, private companies, employers, and HOAs, creating a powerful, centralized system capable of monitoring virtually anyone’s movements in real time or retroactively,” the website complains.
And, unflockscottsdale warns, “Police across the country can use the Flock network to track you without a warrant … Due to a lack of transparency, it is difficult to determine who the city of Scottsdale shares Flock information with.”
According to Flock Safety’s website, this is simply a high-tech solution for an age-old problem.
The problem encountered by SPD, according to Flock: “Declining interest in law enforcement careers led to staffing concerns. Yet, the city’s status as a major event hub and hotspot for organized retail theft meant there was no room for compromise on safety. The police needed to ensure large crowds’ safety, effectively allocate resources and weed out false 911 reports.”
Flock said it was ready: “Scottsdale Police turned to data-driven ‘hot-spotting’ and chose Flock Safety’s suite of solutions.”
The SPD’s Flock-provided “tech arsenal” includes license-plate reading cameras; PTZ (plan, tilt, zoom) cameras; a video management system to integrate third-party live cameras and into Flock’s operating system; and “Privately owned Flock Safety LPR cameras and approximately 4,000 live video streams from local entities…
“All these devices feed into Scottsdale’s Real-Time Crime Center via FlockOS.”
According to Flock, the system helps Scottsdale officers “solve crimes faster, allocate resources efficiently and improve public safety.”
Officer Aaron Bolin, a Scottsdale Police spokesman, confirmed the accuracy of Flock’s description of its SPD services. Bolin added the “approximately 4,000 live video streams” referenced by Flock come from the Scottsdale Unified School District and businesses that have agreements with the SPD.
Meanwhile, the flight of Flock may be growing even wider.
As an Oct. 17, 2025, Yahoo News story notes: “Amazon’s surveillance camera maker Ring announced a partnership on Thursday with Flock, a maker of AI-powered surveillance cameras that share footage with law enforcement.
“Now agencies that use Flock can request that Ring doorbell users share footage to help with ‘evidence collection and investigative work.’”
Asked about the concerns by Fowler and others regarding Scottsdale’s use of Flock, Graham responded, “The technology is used to fight crimes like child abductions, auto thefts, burglaries, and organized theft rings—using vehicle data only; no facial recognition or driver images.
“While deployed through standard city procurement processes,” Graham added, “I agree that more transparency on these tools would strengthen community trust.”
In an interview this week with the Progress, Kwasman remained dead-red on photo cameras.
“I think there’s vast agreement among residents,” the first-term councilman insisted, “that photo enforcement as a means of police work is more burdensome than useful and is used as a money maker.”
But, compared to the flash-and-ticket traffic cameras he wholeheartedly hates, Kwasman is on the fence about license-plate reader cameras.
“Flock doesn’t cause an action,” Kwasman said.
“Like most things in life, there’s nuance here.”
The libertarian-leaning councilman said he is not a “deFlocker” – but keeping an eye on the company that keeps an eye on us.
“Government needs to be extremely vigilant about falling into the trap of becoming a surveillance state,” Kwasman said.
“We can balance security and liberty.”
SPD responds to Flock critics
The Progress asked Scottsdale Police Chief Joe LeDuc to respond to critics of Scottsdale’s use of Flock license plate readers, or LPRc.
“Regarding the claim that Flock LPRs are an ‘AI mass surveillance network’ implemented without oversight or in violation of constitutional protections, that characterization is incorrect,” LeDuc said.
“Scottsdale’s license plate reader cameras are a targeted public safety tool.”
The annual cost for the Flock system is $372,050 – and well worth it, LeDuc insisted.
The chief of police noted a 24% decrease in “Group A” violent crimes compared to 2024. “Technology such as LPRs and our Real Time Crime Center plays a significant role in these results by allowing officers and detectives to act quickly and accurately,” LeDuc said.
The 85 LPR cameras across the city “capture images of license plates and limited vehicle descriptors on public roadways only,” LeDuc said.
“They do not identify people, use facial recognition, or track lawful activity.”
How does the Flock system work?
“Plate data is compared against specific, lawfully established alert lists tied to stolen vehicles, wanted persons, missing persons, or active criminal investigations,” LeDuc said.
“Courts have consistently held that there is no reasonable expectation of privacy for license plates displayed on public roads.”
Regarding privacy concerns, LeDuc said:
“Oversight and accountability are central to how we use this technology. LPR systems are acquired through the city’s standard budget and procurement process and are governed by Scottsdale Police Department policy.
“Access is limited to trained and authorized personnel, every search is logged, and system use is routinely audited.”
He added saving camera footage “follows Arizona public records and retention laws, and misuse of the system is subject to discipline.
“The audits have not found any misuse by our employees using the system.”
LeDuc pointed to the Flock system’s role in the apprehension of a fugitive wanted for murder and assault in a Fashion Square parking lot in 2024.
“After the arrest, the suspect admitted intent to commit further violent acts at the mall,” LeDuc said.
“This is a clear case where speed, precision, and coordination prevented loss of life.”
In the addition to the above and other “high-profile” cases, LeDuc said, “We have many additional examples where LPRs have directly helped prevent or solve violent crimes, including armed robberies, attempted homicides, human trafficking cases, child sex crimes and the capture of suspects wanted for serious felonies across the region.”
Even so, he said questions about privacy are understandable, “and we welcome that dialogue.
“Our responsibility is to protect the community while respecting rights, and we believe Scottsdale’s policies, training, auditing, and documented outcomes demonstrate that balance.”
LeDuc’s bottom line on Flock cameras:
“The public safety benefits of license plate reader technology far outweigh its cost because it allows law enforcement to prevent harm, not just respond to it after the fact …
“When a single alert prevents a homicide, rescues a trafficking victim, or stops a violent offender before they strike again, the value to the community is undeniable.”