General Discussion

https://www.chronline.com/stories/some-washington-cities-reconsider-flock-traffic-cameras-as-judge-rules-their-data-is-public,391326

Some Washington cities reconsider Flock traffic cameras as judge rules their data is public

By Catalina Gaitán / The Seattle Times (TNS)

Posted Tuesday, November 18, 2025 11:04 am

Police in Redmond, Lynnwood and Skamania County have turned off their Flock Safety license-plate-reading surveillance cameras or delayed implementing them, as officials and residents express concerns about who can access the photos and data they generate. That unease, including over how federal immigration enforcement agencies may access the data, has intensified after a Skagit County Superior Court judge ruled this month the cameras’ pictures and information must be made public in accordance with state law.

In her Nov. 6 ruling, Judge Elizabeth Neidzwski said the cities of Sedro-Woolley and Stanwood could not deny an Oregon man’s public records requests for Flock photos and data because they qualify as public records and can’t be exempt from release under the state’s Public Records Act. It is not clear whether Stanwood or Sedro-Woolley intend to appeal Neidzwski’s ruling. Stanwood Mayor Sid Roberts and Sedro-Woolley’s City Administrator Charlie Bush declined to comment, citing the ongoing litigation.

But the ruling has already had a chilling effect on some Washington jurisdictions’ desire for the technology and the potentially overwhelming number of public records it could one day burden them with stewarding.

…
For privacy advocates, the ruling heralds a long-desired reckoning by cities and police agencies in Washington, who can no longer ignore that Flock’s automated license plate readers track every vehicle — not just those linked to a crime, said Timothy Hall, a Yakima attorney representing Jose Rodriguez, the man who requested Stanwood’s and Sedro-Woolley’s Flock records.

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(They don’t want us to know what they are up to.)