Jackson Keeps Flock Cameras as Crime and Privacy Debate Continues

By MAURICE IMHOFF

Contributing Writer

The City of Jackson will continue using Flock Safety license plate reader cameras after City Council approved federal funding for the system earlier this month.

Council voted 5 to 2 Sept. 8 to accept and distribute $42,271 through the federal Justice Assistance Grant program between the Jackson Police Department and Jackson County Sheriff’s Office. About $28,000 will go to Jackson Police to continue operating 10 Flock cameras, while the county will receive $14,247 for its system and other equipment. The cameras automatically capture license plates and vehicle information that investigators can search when looking for vehicles connected to crimes, stolen vehicles, missing people and other investigations.

The decision comes as Jackson continues to deal with violent and property crime, even as some categories have improved in recent years. Jackson Police recorded hundreds of violent crimes in 2024, including aggravated assaults, robberies and three murders, along with more than 1,100 property crimes. City statistics showed improvement in several categories the following year, including declines in aggravated assaults and robberies. Still, crime remains an issue regularly facing Jackson Police, particularly gun violence, assaults, vehicle thefts and other crimes where identifying a vehicle can become part of an investigation.

Jackson Police consider the cameras another tool available to investigators rather than a replacement for traditional police work. The department’s Flock transparency portal lists 10 cameras and says information is retained for 30 days. The system recorded 735 hotlist hits during the 30-day period shown on the portal, although a hit does not itself mean a crime has occurred and must be verified by law enforcement. Jackson’s policy prohibits use of the system for immigration enforcement, traffic enforcement, personal purposes or targeting someone solely because of a protected characteristic. Access to the system also requires a documented reason.

Jackson is far from the only community debating the cameras. Flock says its technology is now used in more than 6,000 communities across 49 states, while a growing number of cities have reconsidered or ended their use over privacy and data sharing concerns. The questions generally center on how long information should be stored, who outside a local police department can search it and whether a system originally installed for local crime investigations could become part of a much larger surveillance network. At the same time, police departments across the country continue pointing to cases where the cameras have helped locate stolen vehicles, identify suspects and find missing people.

Those concerns have now reached state legislatures and Congress. Flock has responded by announcing additional safeguards, including recommending shorter data retention periods and giving local agencies more control over information sharing. Questions have also been raised nationally about whether information could be accessed for federal immigration enforcement, something Jackson’s own policy prohibits. The larger debate is similar to the one now happening locally, focusing on how much access police should have to the technology and what safeguards should be in place when it is used.

The cameras have not been without opposition locally. Residents have raised questions about privacy, how information is shared and whether enough public data has been released showing how often the cameras have actually helped solve crimes. Similar concerns have surfaced elsewhere in Michigan and across the country, while Jackson Police maintain the cameras are only one part of its investigative work. With the city continuing to deal with violent and property crime, the cameras will remain in Jackson for now, although questions surrounding their effectiveness, privacy and oversight are likely to continue.