Automated license plate readers — or ALPRs — are used around the country, including in Summit County and Park City.
Two of them in the western, unincorporated part of the county were damaged in the last four months, according to Summit County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Skyler Talbot. Deputies believe the damage was intentional and are investigating.
A third was damaged in a car crash. Talbot told KPCW the damage totals more than $10,000.
“Unfortunately, some of our ALPR devices have been damaged as part of various ‘de-Flock’ movements,” Talbot wrote in an email. “Multiple devices have been damaged, with some requiring complete replacement.”
The camera producer Flock Safety is receiving much of the broader national backlash.
The American Civil Liberties Union calls Flock cameras a “mass government surveillance product.” In the wake of criticism, the company says it has reduced how long it stores license plate data and added more limits to how that data can be searched.
Talbot said the sheriff’s office doesn’t have any Flock cameras, systems or databases in place in Summit County. Its license plate readers are from Motorola Solutions.
The cameras from Motorola Solutions’ subsidiary Vigilant Solutions still feed a national database law enforcement agencies pay to access.
The Washington Post reports one of those agencies is Immigration and Customs Enforcement, but it’s not clear whether ICE has made use of any data collected in the Wasatch Back.
For local law enforcement, Talbot said the cameras are valuable investigative and crimefighting tools that should be used responsibly.
Summit County authorities used them, for example, to track and then charge the suspects accused of murdering a man in March and dumping his body in Browns Canyon.
Anyone found intentionally damaging license plate readers could face up to felony charges and potential fines.
