Excelsior Springs police launch Flock camera transparency portal ahead of town hall
Excelsior Springs police are co-hosting a town hall on Flock cameras after growing discussion from residents over the license plate reader cameras and their data.
In the last week, ESPD has also released a Transparency Portal, where the department lists prior occasions where Flock cameras have successfully tracked suspects and their vehicles, and the data it uses. The Police Department said the technology has been used to help solve several crimes, a hit-and-run death and a homicide.
In the last weeks, co-founder of hyper-local paper The Excelsior Citizen, Jason Cole, has been flooded with messages about the cameras.
"There's some concern from our community about the data being shared with the Flock itself and who's accessing it, where it's being accessed, why it's being accessed," Cole said.
The paper will co-host the town hall, where Police will have a chance to present information about the cameras before neighbors can ask questions about the surveillance system.
"If the community has a consensus that they no longer want these in the community, they're open to exploring how that might work," Cole said.
Flock Cameras have come under scrutiny in recent months, after national discussions over their misuse. In Missouri and Kansas, several communities have debated the continued use of the cameras.
Cole said that in recent weeks, some Flock cameras have been vandalized.
"Excelsior Springs got Flock cameras probably close to four years ago now, and at the time, nobody really noticed," Cole said.
Cole said a town hall conversation with police is much more productive than the online debate.
"They're being so open and transparent with the information that they have, and allowing our community to kind of make that decision," Cole said.
The town hall is set for Sept. 15th at 6 p.m. at the Excelsior Springs Community Center.
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