Tom's Hardware reported that the Plymouth City Council voted unanimously to end its Flock contract, and that the company did not act on the cancellation for more than a week. Police Chief Eric Fadden then had staff pull the power cords on the city's cameras.
Fadden told The Drive that the goal was to make sure the cameras were “not functioning or recording plates.” The Drive is the outlet whose interview Tom's Hardware cites for those quotes.
What happened in Plymouth?
- The council voted unanimously at its Sept. 22 meeting to discontinue Flock ALPRs.
- On Sept. 23, the city suspended all Plymouth user Flock accounts and notified Flock Safety.
- The city then sent a formal cancellation letter by US Mail and email, after consulting its City Attorney's Office.
- Fadden said Flock's corporate and legal staff did not reply. The only contact was with the company's local representative.
- After more than a week without a reply, Fadden directed staff to disconnect the cameras.
Did Flock respond to the cancellation?
As of the reporting, the company had not answered the city's cancellation through its corporate or legal staff. The report does not say whether Flock has since replied, whether it disputes the cancellation, or whether it plans to remove the cameras.
The report also does not give the date the power cords were disconnected. Tom's Hardware says Flock has been silent on demands to remove cameras in general.
What changes for drivers in Plymouth?
The cameras Plymouth ended its contract for are the ones the city disconnected. Cameras run by neighboring cities, the county, the state, businesses or HOAs were not part of this decision and stay where they are.
Tom's Hardware also reports that Dayton, Minnesota, about 10 miles north of Plymouth, has paused its Flock program and disabled two devices there. Check the camera map to see which cameras are mapped near you, and read how plate readers work if you want the background.
What should residents ask next?
The report does not name a next council meeting or a removal deadline. Residents can ask the council whether Flock has given the city a removal date, and whether the disconnected cameras will be physically taken down. Local transparency records are a place to check what the city has published about its camera use.