County Commission Adds Flock Camera Discussion to Oct. 20 Agenda at Christian Whitehurst’s Suggestion

St. Johns County commissioners will take up Flock cameras as a dedicated agenda item Oct. 20, following continuing public debate over the automated license plate reader (ALPR) system and its placement in county rights of way.

Though numerous residents have taken the podium in recent months to weigh in on Flock cameras during public comment, next Tuesday’s planned discussion marks the first time ALPR technology will officially be on the County Commission’s agenda.

On Aug. 31, the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) directed the removal of Flock cameras from state road rights of way, following Gov. Ron DeSantis’ criticism that the surveillance technology was “out of control.” Flock opponents have raised Fourth Amendment privacy concerns, but have also pointed to real-world cases of abuse in which law enforcement officers used the cameras to stalk former romantic partners.

St. Johns County Sheriff Rob Hardwick eventually joined most other Florida sheriffs in complying with the state’s directive to remove Flock cameras along state roads, though he was the last in Northeast Florida to do so. Soon after the FDOT directive, Hardwick addressed county commissioners to defend his agency’s use of ALPR technology.

So far, the County Commission has not intervened, allowing Hardwick to manage the cameras. Near the end of the Oct. 6 meeting, however, Commissioner Christian Whitehurst reminded his colleagues that "in the spirit of compromise," the board had agreed on Sept. 15 to hold a roundtable with law enforcement on the issue.

"That meeting never materialized," Whitehurst noted, so I'm asking for consensus to have an agenda item October 20th to give the public an opportunity to share their feelings and this board to have a discussion about permitting flock cameras on the county's right of ways."

The other commissioners agreed to add the item to next week’s agenda but took no other action on Flock. The Oct. 20 discussion is expected to center on the county’s permitting authority over cameras in public rights of way and the competing public-safety and privacy concerns surrounding the system.

Several speakers at the Oct. 6 meeting asked the county to remove Flock cameras from county rights of way, raising concerns about privacy, data retention and possible plate-reader errors.

Kailey Masters requested that the county withdraw active permits for Flock Safety and other automatic license plate reader cameras, cover existing cameras and begin their removal. She cited an Oct. 1 federal court decision in United States v. Kyle, saying it found warrantless searches using Flock network location data unconstitutional.

Resident Debra Campbell said records she requested showed her license plate had been scanned 154 times over 30 days and that 11 vehicles associated with her plate were not hers.

Other residents defended the cameras, pointing to their potential value in recovering stolen property and helping locate missing people. Chuck Labanowski said someone whose son’s boat had been stolen was hoping cameras could help identify those responsible.

“I support Sheriff Hardwick in regards to the Flock cameras,” said Labanowski, who serves on the county’s Planning and Zoning Board.

It is not clear how many ALPR cameras remain active on county rights of way, which are not covered by the August FDOT order. SJCO had not responded to questions about the status of those cameras by time of publication.