Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton will assemble an independent panel to review the city’s use of Flock cameras.
The announcement came Friday morning, a week after city residents flooded a public comment period before the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council speaking against the continued use of the automated license plate readers.
“Over the past few months, I’ve listened to the public, and we’ve had numerous internal conversations about this technology. We have already discussed ways to tighten our controls to address concerns expressed by the public,” Gorton said in a news release. “However, I think it’s important to take our due diligence to the next level by appointing an independent, unbiased panel, bringing in outside expertise in technology, civil rights, and the law.”
The city has 125 Flock cameras in use, accessible to law enforcement and the company. Lexington's contract with Flock dates back to 2022.
The cameras, mounted along roadways, use artificial intelligence to capture license plates and locations.
But criticism about Flock cameras is growing nationwide, including in Kentucky, where a Shively police officer was suspended and arrested for accessing the system more than 2,000 times to track a woman he shares a child with.
At an Aug. 27 Lexington council meeting, residents said they fear not only misuse, but the opportunities the cameras present for surveillance and privacy concerns.
“You've seen before you a room full of people from every political and socioeconomic class. There are Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, Democratic Socialists, Greens, and Independents, all standing shoulder to shoulder to oppose action that this governing body has taken,” said Clay Davis, who directs local anti-surveillance group We See You Watching Lexington.
One council member, Emma Curtis, spoke in opposition to the continued use of Flock.
In Friday’s release, the mayor said she hopes to have the review panel in place this month, and said there is “considerable misunderstanding and misinformation in the community about the city’s license plate readers, and what they can and cannot do.”
There have been no public allegations of misuse of Flock by the Lexington Police Department. But in February, a man wanted on charges in North Carolina and located in Lexington by a Flock camera was shot and killed by city police.
Several Northern Kentucky cities have recently ended their contracts with Flock.
