Joplin officials explain Flock camera use amid privacy debate

Joplin officials are defending the city’s use of automated license plate readers while acknowledging questions about privacy, data sharing and the potential for misuse.

Police Chief Richard Pearson and City Manager Nick Edwards discussed the city’s Flock Safety camera system Wednesday on Newstalk KZRG, explaining how the cameras are used and what safeguards are in place.

Pearson said he believes much of the concern surrounding Flock cameras comes down to expectations of privacy in public.

"Police departments across the country have been using flock cameras and license plate reader technology for years with extraordinary success. So I think right now, this is just a bandwagon thing," said Pearson. “When you leave your house and you get in your car and you’re driving in public, you have no reasonable expectation of privacy,” Pearson said.

“Now, that’s not to say that I think we should live in a police surveillance state. I don’t want to live there myself.”

The cameras photograph vehicles and license plates as they travel past fixed locations. Police can later search for a particular plate or set an alert to notify officers if a vehicle connected to an investigation passes a camera.

Pearson said Joplin recently reduced how long information collected by the cameras is stored from 30 days to seven.

The chief said the cameras have been useful in several types of investigations, including Amber Alerts involving missing children, Silver Alerts involving missing older adults and cases involving people with outstanding warrants.

Pearson said an alert from the system does not automatically result in police action. Officers must still verify the information and determine whether there is a legal basis to stop or investigate a vehicle.

Privacy concerns surrounding automated license plate readers have largely focused on how long information is stored, who can search it and how broadly that information can be shared with other agencies.

Pearson said Joplin can control which agencies receive access to its information. He acknowledged that if information is shared more broadly, an authorized officer in another jurisdiction could potentially determine whether a particular vehicle had passed a camera in Joplin.

Pearson said that same ability can help police locate missing people or suspects who travel between jurisdictions.

“If grandpa gets in his car in Newark, New Jersey and wanders off and he goes past a Flock camera in Joplin, Missouri, we should be able to share with Newark, New Jersey, that grandpa just came through here,” Pearson said.

Pearson also acknowledged that officers elsewhere have misused license plate reader systems. He said improper use should be addressed through discipline, policies, training and tighter controls rather than eliminating the technology entirely.

The chief said he does not support creating a surveillance state but argued that vehicles traveling on public roads have traditionally been subject to observation by police, businesses, security cameras and members of the public.

That distinction remains at the center of the broader discussion surrounding license plate readers.

Edwards said the city’s role is primarily to provide police with tools officials believe can improve public safety.

“The public has spoken numerous times ... about the desire for really great public safety,” Edwards said. “We want to make sure they have all the tools available to do their jobs.”