An automated license plate reader (ALPR) camera. | Image courtesy Flock Safety.

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A petition making the rounds on social media is calling on the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office to end its contract with Flock Safety and remove all automated license plate-reading (ALPR) cameras from the county’s jurisdiction. 

The petition — linked here — argues that the ALPR cameras “raise significant privacy concerns” and contribute “to a climate of fear and mistrust.” As of this writing, the petition has garnered 732 signatures.

“We have the power to protect our communities’ privacy while still ensuring their safety,” the petition states. “Instead of relying on invasive technologies, we should advocate for community-based safety programs, engagement with residents, and invest in smart city planning that encourages transparency and accountability.”

The push to remove Flock cameras comes several months after an Outpost investigation revealed that the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office had allowed outside law enforcement agencies to conduct hundreds of thousands of monthly searches through the county’s ALPR data, often without obtaining legally required information for the search. 

Data logs reviewed by the Outpost last year revealed that hundreds of searches by local and state law enforcement agencies referenced federal agencies, including Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which is a direct violation of SB 34. (A CalMatters investigation found that the law is routinely violated by law enforcement agencies across the state.)

Sheriff William Honsal tells the Outpost that its data is now shared with only a small subset of police departments that use the Flock system. See his response to the Outpost’s questions, below.

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office implemented the county’s ALPR program in April 2024, which consists of eight “full-time” cameras and two portable “flex” ALPR cameras provided by Flock Safety, an Atlanta-based company that has contracts with more than 5,000 law enforcement agencies across the country. 

The cameras are often mounted to street poles or other fixed positions along a roadway and automatically take pictures of vehicle license plates, which are then translated into letters and numbers. The cameras do not use facial recognition technology. The ALPR data, which is maintained and stored by Flock, is deleted after 30 days.

“[ALPR technology] is used by the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office to convert data associated with vehicle license plates for official law enforcement purposes, including identifying stolen or wanted vehicles, stolen license plates and missing persons,” the county’s ALPR policy states. “It may also be used to gather information related to active warrants, wanted persons, suspect interdiction and stolen property recovery.”

When asked how many crimes HCSO has solved with the help of ALPR technology, a sheriff’s office spokesperson told the Outpost’s Ryan Burns that Flock cameras were used to track down two suspects involved in a homicide investigation in Glendale in July 2025.

“Deputies were able to get a description of the vehicle from witnesses,” the spokesperson said. “ALPR data was checked with that data and the suspect vehicle was seen leaving the area on the Blue Lake camera. Detectives were able to see the license plate; conduct follow up and the two suspects were arrested and booked into the HCC on murder. There have numerous other cases from missing persons vehicles being located to stolen vehicles being located because of the ALPR hits.”

While there are certainly benefits associated with ALPR technology, opponents are uneasy about constant surveillance, especially since there’s no way to opt out. Anyone who drives past the cameras, criminal or not, will have their data tracked and stored.

“[S]tudies and reports indicate that constant surveillance doesn’t necessarily equate to increased safety,” the petition states. “For instance, a report by the American Civil Liberties Union emphasizes that mass surveillance invades privacy while making little impact on crime rates. Rather than making our communities feel safer, these cameras often contribute to a climate of fear and mistrust.”

The petition urges community members to contact local officials to demand the removal of Flock cameras, including Sheriff Honsal and the Board of Supervisors. Online chatter indicates that ALPR opponents are going to address the issue during public comment at the Board of Supervisors’ June 2 meeting.

An update to the petition from the change.org team includes a response from Fourth District Supervisor Natalie Arroyo who wrote that the decision to end the contract with Flock “is entirely in the purview of the elected Humboldt County Sheriff, not the Board of Supervisors.”

Reached for additional comment on the matter, Clerk of the Board Tracy D’Amico told that Outpost that the Board of Supervisors has “final authority” over the county budget, but individual departments are able to make their own spending decisions. 

“[T]he county’s Purchasing Policy allows the Purchasing Agent, on behalf of departments, to execute contracts up to the purchasing threshold. There is still some oversight on contracts that don’t go to the Board,” D’Amico wrote via email. “[T]he Board of Supervisors received a report in 2024 discussing the [ALPR] program, expenditures and obligations that have already been incurred.”

To clarify, the county’s Purchasing Policy allows the Purchasing Agent, on behalf of departments, to execute contracts up to the purchasing threshold. There is still some oversight on contracts that don’t go to the Board.

In response to an inquiry, Sheriff Honsal sent a statement to the Outpost. It is reproduced below:

Flock has implemented safeguards that ensure all data is controlled by the originating agency. There are now options to lock out sharing with federal or out of state agencies. We are currently utilizing these restriction options. Additionally, each request to share information with an outside agency is reviewed by an administrator. We have policy in place that ensures all queries of data are associated to an active investigation. A monthly internal audit is conducted to ensure compliance within HCSO. 

HCSO currently has 7 permanently mounted ALPR cameras and 2 mobile cameras. These cameras were purchased using grant funding. To maintain the service of these cameras we pay $21,000 yearly. We are in a contract with Flock that will expire on 6/30/2027.

The Sheriff’s Office respects the privacy concerns that community members have regarding any technology used by law enforcement.  HCSO has a responsibility to protect public safety, but we also have an equal responsibility to protect the constitutional rights and privacy interests of the people we serve. Those two responsibilities are not in conflict when technology is used lawfully, narrowly, and with the boundaries of the law.  The cameras are placed on public roadways where there is no expectation of privacy.    

License plate reader cameras are not facial recognition cameras or the do not identify who is driving a vehicle. They capture license plate information and vehicle characteristics from vehicles traveling in public view.  This is a far less intrusive tool than many traditional investigative methods, such as prolonged physical surveillance, traffic stops based on limited information, or the use of additional personnel to manually watch roadways and vehicles.

In our Rural County, this technology is necessary because our geography is large, our staffing is limited, and our deputies cannot be everywhere at once. Humboldt County covers a large rural area with limited law enforcement resources.   At the same time, we are still responsible for investigating violent crime, stolen vehicles, missing persons, organized theft, major drug trafficking, wanted persons, Amber Alerts, Silver Alerts, and other serious public safety incidents.   

When the County has cut a dozen deputy positions we must look for responsible, cost-effective tools that help us maintain public safety without increasing unnecessary contacts with the public.

License plate reader cameras help law enforcement develop leads after a crime has occurred. They can assist in identifying a suspect vehicle, locating a stolen vehicle, finding a wanted person, or determining whether a vehicle connected to a serious crime entered or left a particular area. In many cases, this technology helps investigators narrow their focus based on facts, rather than speculation. That is better for the investigation, better for the public, and better for privacy.

This technology also directly helps victims of crime. When someone’s vehicle is stolen, when a family member is missing, when a victim is being followed or threatened, or when a suspect vehicle leaves the scene of a violent crime, time matters.   LPR cameras can provide investigators with timely leads that may help locate a victim, recover stolen property, identify a suspect vehicle, or establish the direction of travel after a crime has occurred.  For victims, this can mean faster answers, quicker recovery of property, stronger investigations, and a better opportunity to hold offenders accountable.    In many cases, victims are left waiting while law enforcement tries to piece together limited information from witness statements, surveillance video, and delayed reports. License plate reader technology can help reduce that delay by giving investigators a starting point based on objective vehicle data.    

The Sheriff’s office has a strict LPR policy, and I urge you to review the policy. We only hold onto the data for 30 days.  We are not sharing data with all State Agencies.  We are only sharing data with the Northern California Sheriff’s, CA Highway Patrol, and our local Police Departments. We are not sharing data with Border Patrol or ICE.   We are not sharing data with any agencies outside the state.   Also, we have a transparency page that outlines our use of LPR technology. 

The Sheriff’s Office believes license plate reader cameras are a reasonable, limited, and necessary public safety tool for Humboldt County.    We encourage the public to understand that this is useful and it respects the rights of our community.   

Here are a few of the successes:   there are many more.  

  • 202402640, July 2024: The stolen pride flag from the courthouse investigation.   Suspect vehicle located using the LPR camera data.   Suspect ultimately held accountable.  
  • 202502936, July 2025:  LPR Data help identify the suspect vehicle in the homicide of Joshua McCollister that occurred in the Glendale transient camp. 2 arrests made as a result. Suspects are awaiting trial.  Without the LPR data, this may have been an unsolved homicide.  
  • 202405268, December 2024: LPR data captured the moment that a drive by shooting occurred in McKinleyville and immediately identified to us the suspect vehicle. As a result of this case, one person has already pled guilty to the shooting, and another is in custody awaiting trial 
  • 202504209, September 2025: LPR Data helped us locate and return a stolen trailer to its rightful owner. 
  • 202503326, August 2025: We had surveillance footage of a getaway vehicle from a vehicle burglary and LPR data helped identify the suspect vehicle which ultimately resulted in the arrest and conviction of 3 suspects who have committed numerous crimes of the same type
  • 202503435, August 2025: Stolen vehicle recovery after we were notified of its location by our LPR data system. 

Here is a real-world example:  Last year, Austin made the decision to turn off its License Plate Reader cameras (LPR) network following a public pressure campaign built on misinformation about how the technology works. This weekend showed what that tradeoff can look like.

For nearly 24 hours, three suspects moved through Austin in stolen vehicles, carrying out a shooting spree across 12 separate locations. People were shot. Homes, apartment buildings, businesses, and fire stations were hit. Robberies and additional car thefts piled up as the suspects kept moving.

The response was massive. 200 officers, helicopter support, K9 units, a full manhunt. Even with all of that, the suspects stayed ahead of law enforcement. Then they crossed into Manor, Texas.

Manor is a city of roughly 20,000 residents with a fraction of Austin’s resources. What Manor has is an active license plate recognition network and the community support to keep it running. Manor PD located the suspects almost immediately. The spree ended. Residents stayed safe.