Denver Mayor Mike Johnston proposed a contract with a new provider of license plate-reading cameras on Tuesday, saying it will come with added precautions as the city ends its controversial arrangement with Flock Safety.
After facing months of public criticism over the city’s relationship with Flock, the mayor’s office is proposing a new contract with Axon, which already provides other technology for the Denver Police Department.
Over the past year, hundreds of Denverites had criticized Johnston for repeatedly extending the city’s contract with Flock despite reports that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents had used Flock’s database to aid in President Donald Trump’s mass-deportation campaign.
The company has also faced scrutiny of its nationwide camera system, which many critics say is essentially a mass-surveillance network ripe for abuse.
We could also just not have license plate cameras around. That’d be nice.
The whole point of CCTV is the fact that it’s "closed circuit meaning only the owner of the camera can access it. Yes, the cops can get access to that footage if they have a warrant, but that’s kinda the point. Without a warrant there is no justifiable reason to track people yet that’s exactly what Flock cameras do without a warrant. Some people say the backlash is just overreacting but Flock cameras are literally the antithesis of security cameras and CCTV as they track everyone regardless of whether or not it has to do with an investigation.
