Address privacy concerns with Flock cameras in Klamath Falls
The Issue
In Klamath Falls, Oregon, our community prides itself on openness, camaraderie, and the right to privacy, which is why the recent introduction of Flock cameras has sparked significant concern among many residents. As citizens of Klamath County, we are growing increasingly anxious about the potential misuse of surveillance technology and the implications it holds for our private lives. Specifically, we are worried about the data these cameras collect, how it's used, and the potential for grave privacy abuses by government entities.
Flock cameras, installed throughout our city, are strategically positioned to capture license plate images and store data that could be used in ways that infringe upon individual privacy rights. While these cameras are intended to increase safety and improve law enforcement effectiveness, there is legitimate concern that this technology can be weaponized against citizens, leading to unjust surveillance practices that compromise our fundamental right to privacy in public settings.
Real-World Evidence of Surveillance Abuse
We do not have to look far to see how unmonitored mass surveillance technologies are weaponized against private individuals. Across the country, multiple law enforcement officers have recently been caught and prosecuted for using these exact automated license plate reader (ALPR) networks to stalk, track, and harass citizens for purely personal reasons:
Wisconsin: A Milwaukee law enforcement officer was criminally charged after using his department’s Flock network to track a romantic partner and her ex-partner nearly 180 times over a two-month span. In an even more alarming twist, the investigator assigned to that case was subsequently arrested for misusing the exact same tracking systems to spy on people in his own personal life.
North Carolina: In July 2026, an internal audit in Fayetteville resulted in the sudden firing of three police officers who were caught using the Flock camera system to run unauthorized, highly personalized searches.
Georgia: A local Police Chief resigned and faced criminal tracking and stalking charges after investigators discovered he had leveraged database access to track an ex-partner—even conducting unauthorized cross-state searches as far away as California.
These cases prove that without severe, transparent, and independent safeguards, a warrantless location database inherently invites dangerous, personalized overreach.
The Fourth Amendment Implications
Privacy advocates and constitutional scholars increasingly argue that these expansive camera networks violate the Fourth Amendment, which protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures.
While historical legal precedents like United States v. Knotts (1983) suggested that drivers have no expectation of privacy on public roads, modern AI-driven surveillance has completely changed the landscape. A single officer spotting a vehicle is a snapshot; an interconnected matrix of automated cameras forms a continuous retrospective dragnet.
By aggregating billions of data points, these systems track where a person sleeps, works, shops, worships, or seeks medical care. The U.S. Supreme Court acknowledged this shift in Carpenter v. United States (2018), ruling that continuous historical location tracking requires a warrant. A continuous automated dragnet across Klamath Falls circumvents these exact constitutional safeguards, putting powerful, localized tracking capabilities into the hands of operators without judicial oversight or a warrant.
Our Call to Action
We believe that our local government should be fully transparent about how data collected from Flock cameras is being utilized, who has access to this data, and for what purposes. We call on the City of Klamath Falls to implement stringent guidelines and independent oversight regarding the use of surveillance technology, ensuring that it is not wielded as a tool for privacy invasion but used solely for the safety and well-being of residents.
As a united community, our goal is to gather enough signatures to effectively voice our concerns to local government leaders, urging them to reassess and refine the current policies governing Flock camera operations. By doing so, we hope to uphold our right to privacy and guarantee that technology serves us, not exploits us.
We invite concerned citizens of Klamath Falls and beyond to join us in this critical endeavor. Please sign this petition to demand greater accountability and protect our community’s right to privacy. Together, we can make a difference.
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The Issue
In Klamath Falls, Oregon, our community prides itself on openness, camaraderie, and the right to privacy, which is why the recent introduction of Flock cameras has sparked significant concern among many residents. As citizens of Klamath County, we are growing increasingly anxious about the potential misuse of surveillance technology and the implications it holds for our private lives. Specifically, we are worried about the data these cameras collect, how it's used, and the potential for grave privacy abuses by government entities.
Flock cameras, installed throughout our city, are strategically positioned to capture license plate images and store data that could be used in ways that infringe upon individual privacy rights. While these cameras are intended to increase safety and improve law enforcement effectiveness, there is legitimate concern that this technology can be weaponized against citizens, leading to unjust surveillance practices that compromise our fundamental right to privacy in public settings.
Real-World Evidence of Surveillance Abuse
We do not have to look far to see how unmonitored mass surveillance technologies are weaponized against private individuals. Across the country, multiple law enforcement officers have recently been caught and prosecuted for using these exact automated license plate reader (ALPR) networks to stalk, track, and harass citizens for purely personal reasons:
Wisconsin: A Milwaukee law enforcement officer was criminally charged after using his department’s Flock network to track a romantic partner and her ex-partner nearly 180 times over a two-month span. In an even more alarming twist, the investigator assigned to that case was subsequently arrested for misusing the exact same tracking systems to spy on people in his own personal life.
North Carolina: In July 2026, an internal audit in Fayetteville resulted in the sudden firing of three police officers who were caught using the Flock camera system to run unauthorized, highly personalized searches.
Georgia: A local Police Chief resigned and faced criminal tracking and stalking charges after investigators discovered he had leveraged database access to track an ex-partner—even conducting unauthorized cross-state searches as far away as California.
These cases prove that without severe, transparent, and independent safeguards, a warrantless location database inherently invites dangerous, personalized overreach.
The Fourth Amendment Implications
Privacy advocates and constitutional scholars increasingly argue that these expansive camera networks violate the Fourth Amendment, which protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures.
While historical legal precedents like United States v. Knotts (1983) suggested that drivers have no expectation of privacy on public roads, modern AI-driven surveillance has completely changed the landscape. A single officer spotting a vehicle is a snapshot; an interconnected matrix of automated cameras forms a continuous retrospective dragnet.
By aggregating billions of data points, these systems track where a person sleeps, works, shops, worships, or seeks medical care. The U.S. Supreme Court acknowledged this shift in Carpenter v. United States (2018), ruling that continuous historical location tracking requires a warrant. A continuous automated dragnet across Klamath Falls circumvents these exact constitutional safeguards, putting powerful, localized tracking capabilities into the hands of operators without judicial oversight or a warrant.
Our Call to Action
We believe that our local government should be fully transparent about how data collected from Flock cameras is being utilized, who has access to this data, and for what purposes. We call on the City of Klamath Falls to implement stringent guidelines and independent oversight regarding the use of surveillance technology, ensuring that it is not wielded as a tool for privacy invasion but used solely for the safety and well-being of residents.
As a united community, our goal is to gather enough signatures to effectively voice our concerns to local government leaders, urging them to reassess and refine the current policies governing Flock camera operations. By doing so, we hope to uphold our right to privacy and guarantee that technology serves us, not exploits us.
We invite concerned citizens of Klamath Falls and beyond to join us in this critical endeavor. Please sign this petition to demand greater accountability and protect our community’s right to privacy. Together, we can make a difference.
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Petition created on July 15, 2026