Flock's CEO Asserts That Its Cameras Do Not Violate the Constitution: 'Clear and Simple'

      Flock

      The most significant news and reviews about cars, no nonsense.

      Our free daily newsletter delivers the crucial stories straight to your inbox every weekday.

      Flock is not only at the heart of a national discussion, but it also became central to my own life when the system tracked me for several days, culminating in four police officers ambushing my wife and me. I was one of many mistakes made each month due to the intersection of law enforcement and new technology, and the nationwide conversation surrounding privacy, warrantless tracking, and the Fourth Amendment is currently robust.

      Garrett Langley, the Founder and CEO of Flock Safety, participated in an exclusive one-on-one interview on The Drivecast to talk about the escalating public conversation regarding privacy, the Fourth Amendment, and Flock’s role in it. He firmly stated that he does not believe there is a legal issue now or will be in the future.

      You can listen to the full conversation starting from the point where Langley talks about tracking and people’s rights.

      Langley shared, “People usually have three main concerns or questions about the company: privacy, constitutionality, and accountability.”

      Addressing the Fourth Amendment and legal matters, Langley remarked, “You mentioned the constitutional aspect. That one is rather clear-cut. Neither you nor I decide what constitutes a constitutional violation. We have judges and elected officials, and there’s a process for that. We adhere to the law and the Constitution. So far, based on our understanding and what will likely remain true for a long time, the courts have ruled that this does not constitute a warrantless search; it is a valid product concerning the Fourth Amendment. Thus, I don’t foresee any changes there.”

      On the topic of privacy and data retention, Langley noted, “Regarding privacy, we also raise significant questions. For instance, before I started Flock, this kind of ALPR data was stored indefinitely and resold for commercial purposes by towing companies to insurance agencies, which I found quite concerning. We were among the first to implement a default retention period of 30 days, and we do not sell the data.”

      In relation to data, he stated, “Last year, we assisted in solving over a million crimes in collaboration with local law enforcement using the Flock system. If I told you that reducing the 30-day retention to 14 days would lead to 30% fewer solved crimes—resulting in about 300,000 victims without justice—would you accept that trade-off?” The Drive did not receive any verification for these statistics or their sources.

      Who should determine if your community utilizes automatic license plate reader technology? Langley responded, “It shouldn’t be up to you and me. Actually, the Mayor of Plymouth [the city I reside in, which we referenced in multiple examples throughout the discussion] and the City Council should decide, as that’s a reasonable compromise. We elect representatives who reflect our values to tackle these tough, nuanced questions.”

      Langley asserted that the usage and implementation of Flock are decisions made by the cities. However, he emphasized that those choices will significantly affect public safety and the system's efficacy. “A city might decide, ‘We like Flock’s concept, but we only want to focus on Amber Alerts and Silver Alerts.’ Therefore, there would be no data retention, just alerts. I would say, ‘Okay, you might be receiving about 50% of the system's value, but if that’s what you prefer in Plymouth, great; we’re happy to assist, but you’ll still be safer.’ You may be less safe than in San Francisco, but that’s an option,” Langley explained.

      He added, “We don’t want to impose our views as individual citizens. I reside in Atlanta; you live in Plymouth. We simply wish that more elected officials would conduct their research, develop informed opinions, engage with the community, and then establish standards that make sense for them.”

      What makes sense for each city remains uncertain as discussions and debates about Flock and automatic license plate reader technology continue across the nation. However, Langley hopes to expand Flock from the current 7,000 cities to all of America’s 17,000 cities in the future.

      Have a tip? Contact us at tips@thedrive.com.