Flock has since changed who can access the camera data. Anyone conducting a search now has to provide a case number and a reason for the search.
Automated license plate reader cameras are back online in Bonney Lake, several months after police shut them off to bring the program in line with new state regulations.
Bonney Lake Police Chief Mark Berry says the Flock Safety cameras had been turned off since December while the department waited to see what rules state lawmakers would put in place — and worked out some conflicts between the department's internal policies and what Flock allowed.
“There's always a balance between privacy and law enforcement, and I had some concerns about it not meeting what I was comfortable with,” Berry said. “Now Flock has caught up that it matches what I'm trying to do.”
Flock has since changed who can access the camera data. Anyone conducting a search now has to provide a case number and a reason for the search. Outside law enforcement agencies that want access to Bonney Lake's camera data must submit a request, which the department reviews before granting access.
“I want people to know that we use them to solve crimes,” Berry said. “We are not using them to write traffic tickets. We don't use them for immigration enforcement. We are not tracking people.”
New state laws regulating automated license plate readers took effect earlier this year, aiming to protect driver privacy. The laws prohibit the cameras from being used in immigration investigations or to track people seeking protected health care services. They also limit how long data can be stored to 21 days, with some exceptions.
“I think there's still work to be done. I think the state legislation went too far,” Berry said. “It does not allow private companies or private citizens to just share their information with us.”
“So if you are a private company and you have a Flock system and you're the victim of a crime, we have to write a search warrant to get that evidence,” he added. “That seems like a government overreach to me.”
The cameras remain controversial. In nearby Covington, Flock cameras have been targeted and vandalized amid privacy concerns. Bonney Lake police stress the cameras are used only for criminal investigations and missing persons cases, not for surveillance.
“It does not take pictures of people's faces. I don't even know who's in the vehicle,” Berry said. “It just helps me put a vehicle in a location during a specific time frame to help solve crimes.”
Police also confirmed the cameras' national search setting is turned off, meaning data can only be shared with other agencies within Washington state, and the department conducts random audits in addition to using Flock's auditing tools to ensure the data is only being accessed for legitimate reasons.
