Coral Springs Police explain Flock license plate cameras after post draws 24,700 comments
Coral Springs, Florida – A Facebook post from the Coral Springs Police Department about its license plate reader cameras drew an unusually large response, with roughly 24,700 comments appearing on the department’s page and raising questions about what the technology records and how officers can use the information.
The volume of reaction pushed the issue into the spotlight at a recent city commission meeting, where Police Chief Brad Mock addressed concerns about the cameras and explained what information the system actually captures.
Mock said the cameras are designed to photograph a vehicle’s license plate along with the rear of the vehicle where the plate is mounted. According to the chief, the system does not create a broader picture of the people inside the vehicle.
“It does not capture any identifying marks of the drivers, the passengers,” Mock said. “We do not know how many passengers in there, who’s driving, the race, the sex.”
Mock also said the cameras do not use facial recognition. He added that the equipment does not have Bluetooth capabilities and cannot connect to or access a person’s cellphone.
The explanation came as city officials examined concerns that license plate readers could provide police with more information about residents than many people realize.
The Coral Springs Police Department uses the Flock system in two primary ways, according to Mock. The cameras can automatically generate alerts when a vehicle associated with certain alerts or investigations enters the city. Those include Amber Alerts, Silver Alerts, stolen vehicles and missing-person cases.
The other use comes after a crime has been reported. Detectives can search the license plate reader database as part of an investigation.
Mock emphasized that officers are not supposed to use the database simply to browse vehicles without a legitimate reason.
“We don’t just randomly go in and search tags,” Mock said.
According to the chief, searches are connected to specific identifying information about the person conducting the search and the reason for it. Each search includes a login, a timestamp and a reason tied to a case.
A representative of Flock Safety, the company behind the technology, also told officials that the system can identify unusual increases in searches rather than requiring someone to manually review every database activity log.
The department had highlighted the technology in a July 13 Facebook post, saying the cameras had helped officers recover stolen vehicles and identify suspects in robbery and homicide cases.
The same post cited a 63 percent violent crime clearance rate for Coral Springs, compared with a national average of roughly 35 percent to 40 percent.
While some officials acknowledged the potential benefits of the cameras, the commission meeting also showed that questions remain about access to the data and how the system is used.
Commissioner Joshua Simmons said he supports the purpose behind the license plate readers but has concerns about the information collected and who can access it.
“I support the intent behind why we have our LPRs,” Simmons said. “I do have a lot of concerns around the data and access to the data.”
The discussion also touched on whether the technology could effectively create a record of where a particular resident travels.
Commissioner Shawn Cerra asked whether the system can build a location history for a resident. Jalen Johnson, a public affairs officer with Flock Safety, rejected that idea.
“Absolutely not,” said Jalen Johnson, public affairs officer at Flock Safety. He said courts have held that license plate readers do not track a person’s movements.
The issue prompted Simmons to request a workshop focused specifically on the city’s use of the cameras. Such a meeting would give commissioners an opportunity to go through the technology, its capabilities and the rules governing access to its information in greater detail.
Mayor Scott Brook also asked Flock Safety to provide the answers to the commission’s questions in writing. He said the city would make those written responses available to the public.
The exchange comes after the department’s social media post generated thousands of comments, showing the level of public interest surrounding automated license plate readers.
For Coral Springs officials, the discussion now centers on balancing the investigative value of the cameras with questions about privacy, data access and oversight.
Police say the system gives detectives another tool when investigating crimes and can provide immediate alerts involving vehicles connected to serious incidents. At the same time, commissioners are seeking more information about how the technology works and how the data can be accessed.
The upcoming workshop and written responses from Flock Safety are expected to provide residents with additional details about the city’s use of the cameras.
For now, Mock’s explanation to the commission was that the cameras record license plates and the rear of the vehicles carrying them, rather than identifying the people inside. The department also says searches are logged and tied to cases, while Flock Safety maintains that the system does not create individual location histories.
With thousands of residents and others already weighing in online, the debate over license plate readers is unlikely to disappear. The city is now preparing to put more information about the system in front of the public as officials continue examining how the technology is used in Coral Springs.
