Two Flock cameras intentionally cut down in rural SC town, police say
Two license plate reader poles in Pageland, South Carolina, were destroyed over the holiday weekend, police said.
The Pageland Police Department said in a Facebook post on Sunday that an unknown suspect cut down two Flock camera poles. Police did not say where the cameras were located, or what day the cameras were destroyed.
“These cameras are in place to help protect our community and provide law enforcement with valuable investigative leads. Unfortunately, someone chose to intentionally damage property that belongs to the Town and ultimately impacts the safety of our community,” police said in the post.
What are Flock cameras?
Flock manufactures automatic license plate readers, which use artificial intelligence to capture surveillance and license plate data.
Over 5,000 police departments across 49 states contract with Flock, according to the company.
There are six Flock cameras in Pageland, according to DeFlock Maps, a database of Flock camera locations throughout the U.S.
Pageland, known as the “Watermelon Capital of the World,” is a town of about 2,500 people about 45 miles east of Rock Hill just south of the state line.
Police said the cameras have been an “invaluable investigative tool,” saying that the cameras have solved stolen vehicle cases, identified hit-and-run victims and have solved a homicide.
Flock’s license plate readers have been the subject of online scorn and legal challenges. The American Civil Liberties Union claims the cameras are weaponized by law enforcement against private citizens. Flock said its cameras do not recognize or identify faces.
Over 50 communities have terminated their partnerships with Flock, including Santa Cruz, California, Flagstaff, Arizona, and Eugene, Oregon.
This isn’t the only instance of Flock vandalism across the country.
A Virginia man was arrested in October for destroying 13 Flock cameras over a period of several months. He later told investigators the cameras were a violation of his Fourth Amendment rights, according to WAVY.
A 44-year-old New Mexico man was accused of destroying $20,000 worth of license plate readers in July, even admitting to taking videos of the vandalism, according to KRQE.
