Chambers County sheriff defends Flock cameras, plans to add more

CHAMBERS COUNTY, Texas - While some communities are questioning Flock cameras, the Chambers County Sheriff’s Office is defending the technology and plans to add more. 

Chambers County planning to add more Flock cameras

What we know:

Sheriff Brian Hawthorne says automated license plate readers have helped reduce crime in Chambers County and provided evidence that has led to hundreds of arrests over the last two years. 

Hawthorne says the cameras identify vehicles and license plates, giving investigators another way to determine which vehicles may have been involved in a crime.

He called the technology one of the best crime-fighting tools developed in the last decade, comparing its effectiveness to DNA and fingerprints. 

Hawthorne says Chambers County is safer because of the cameras and that deputies have used them to solve cases ranging from burglaries to homicides.

He also pointed to a recent case in which deputies arrested a kidnapping suspect from South Carolina and recovered a 12-year-old child.

Privacy concerns surrounding Flock cameras

Flock cameras have faced criticism in some communities over privacy concerns, but Hawthorne says he believes there is a lot of misinformation surrounding how the technology works.

According to the sheriff, the cameras capture an image of a vehicle and its license plate but do not capture who is inside the vehicle.

Hawthorne says the cameras record where a vehicle was at a specific time when its license plate is read, but he says they do not continuously track or follow drivers.

He also says law enforcement agencies should have strict policies in place governing when license plate reader data can be accessed and used.

Hawthorne says its purpose is public safety and helping law enforcement in cases such as missing persons, kidnapped children, recover stolen property and identify criminal suspects.

Chambers County plans to add more cameras

There are currently about 30 Flock cameras in Chambers County, according to Hawthorne, and the sheriff’s office plans to add more.

While some communities are shutting off or removing their cameras, Hawthorne says those decisions can also impact neighboring law enforcement agencies that rely on the technology to help solve crimes across jurisdictional lines.

Hawthorne says only law enforcement has access to the county’s cameras and considers them a proven public safety tool.

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