Record request yields seven Flock camera vandalism reports in Columbia
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Columbia Police Department has responded to at least seven reports of vandalism to Flock cameras in the city from the beginning of this year through Sept. 30, according to documents obtained by ABC 17 News.
However, CPD redacted all the locations, citing protections in Missouri’s Sunshine Law that allow police to keep information about surveillance from the public. ABC 17 News has requested clarification.
Dave Roland, a senior legal adviser for the Freedom Center of Missouri, said this could be a violation of the Sunshine, but it would require a lawsuit and convincing a judge that the information doesn’t endanger public safety or an individual.
The first report was filed on July 22, with six other reports filed in August. The bulk of the August reports were filed within one week, and two reports were filed on Aug. 19.
In late September, a Flock camera appeared to be cut down in Cosmo Park. However, the records request didn’t return a report associated with that incident.
CPD also redacted suspect information in the reports. ABC 17 News has reached out to the Boone County Prosecutor’s Office to see if any charges have been referred.
flockincidentsDownloadThis comes as people protest Flock camera use across the U.S. Some protesters claim the AI-powered cameras violate privacy. Many law enforcement agencies claim the data helps combat crime, including CPD and the Jefferson City Police Department.
Karen Sicheneder a volunteer with “Get the Flock Out Como” said the group doesn’t condone vandalism.
“Our goal is to remove Flock from Columbia through public pressure, civic engagement, and action by our elected officials. At the same time, damaged cameras should not become a distraction from the larger issue,” Sicheneder said.
The group would like Columbia’s contract with Flock to expire and not be renewed after data abuse and privacy concerns have risen.
Rep. Kathy Steinhoff (D-Columbia) said privacy concerns are valid; however, guardrails need to be in place to avoid misuse of the data.
“There’s the fact that we can solve crimes in a way that can help our law enforcement to keep our community safe, but we want to protect private citizens in the process. So, how we find that balance is really important,” Steinhoff said.
Gov. Mike Kehoe signed an executive order to put in some restrictions on how Flock camera data is used, but the General Assembly will have to make the laws.
Steinhoff said Republicans and Democrats seem to understand that guardrails need to be in place.
“I know there’s definitely been a lot of conversations on both sides of the aisle about concerns about Flock cameras. We’ve seen around the country some security breaches that are not what we expect when approving these in our local communities,” Steinhoff said.
She said Flock cameras are among the top concerns of citizens and will likely take legislative priority.
A protest against the automatic license plate readers was held in Jefferson City on Sunday.
Some agencies have begun to terminate contracts with the camera company, including the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Office in Mid-Missouri.
CPD operates a network with dozens of the cameras placed through Columbia.
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