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The Mount Vernon Police Department is providing new insight into how its network of automated license plate reader cameras is being used, following growing public interest and questions about privacy, surveillance and crime prevention.
Police Chief Robert Morgan says there are currently 14 Flock Safety cameras operating in Knox County, all located within Mount Vernon. Eight of those cameras are owned and operated by the Mount Vernon Police Department, while six additional cameras are privately owned by local businesses or organizations that have agreed to share data with law enforcement through the Flock Safety system.
The cameras are designed to capture images of vehicles traveling on public roads. Rather than recording drivers or passengers, the system identifies a vehicle’s license plate, make, model, color and other distinguishing characteristics. According to Morgan, the cameras do not use facial recognition technology, do not record continuous video, and cannot be used to issue speeding tickets or other traffic citations.
More than 152,000 license plates scanned in one month
The department says the system has become a valuable investigative tool.
During the previous 30 days alone, Mount Vernon’s Flock cameras recorded approximately 152,293 unique license plates traveling through the city. During that same period, the system generated 661 investigative alerts, notifying officers when a vehicle associated with a wanted person, stolen vehicle, missing person or other law enforcement database entered the area.
Morgan said the technology has helped investigators solve more than 40 criminal cases, including thefts, domestic violence investigations, hit-skip crashes and locating stolen vehicles. Police say officers do not stop vehicles solely because they pass a camera. Instead, alerts are treated as investigative leads that officers verify before taking enforcement action.
Privacy concerns remain
While law enforcement officials say the technology improves public safety, civil liberties organizations have continued to raise concerns about the growing use of automated license plate readers.
Groups including the ACLU of Ohio have questioned how long data is retained, who has access to it and whether expanding surveillance technology could create privacy concerns for drivers who are not suspected of any crime. Similar debates have taken place in communities across Ohio and the country as more police agencies adopt the technology.
Morgan has defended the program, saying drivers have no reasonable expectation of privacy while traveling on public roadways, citing long-established legal precedent regarding observations made in public places.
How the cameras are used
According to the department, Flock cameras are intended to assist with criminal investigations by quickly identifying vehicles connected to serious offenses or public safety concerns.
Alerts can include vehicles reported stolen, license plates linked to wanted suspects, missing or endangered persons, and vehicles connected to crimes entered into national and state law enforcement databases. Officers can also search historical vehicle data during active investigations when authorized under department policy.
As communities across Ohio continue weighing the balance between technology and privacy, Mount Vernon’s Flock camera network remains one of the most extensive automated license plate reader systems currently operating in north-central Ohio.
