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Hamilton County Sheriff's Office pausing use of 75 Flock cameras in region
WLWT • • nation
Key Points:
- The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office has paused the use of Flock camera technology, stopping all license plate recording and planning to remove or cloak the 75 cameras without extra cost to the county.
- Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey cited resident concerns about privacy and emphasized the pause is temporary until stronger regulations and safety-focused parameters are established with input from Flock and the Ohio legislature.
- No misuse of the technology by deputies has been reported, but growing public backlash has led multiple Greater Cincinnati communities to end their Flock camera programs this summer.
- Flock, used by over 5,000 law enforcement agencies nationwide, announced privacy-related changes including reducing data retention from 30 to 7 days and mandatory misuse detection for all customers.
- U.S. Representative Thomas Massie has introduced the "Flock-Off Act" aiming to block federal funding for automated license-plate readers and biometric surveillance cameras, citing taxpayer privacy concerns.
