Sabha, Tamer
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Destiny Rivera-Gomez < [email protected] >
Wednesday, April 15, 2026 12:54 PM
PublicComment-AutoResponse
Flock out of Pasadena
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M Public Comment,
I urge Pasadena City Council to put safety over surveillance and cut ties with Flock.
Flock ALPR cameras are being used for indiscriminate surveillance, tracking and targeting of countless individuals. While Flock, law enforcement and city government tout the benefits of automated license plate readers for public safety, in reality it endangers everyone - in particular immigrants and their families, people of color, people seeking sensitive healthcare, and the many exercising civil liberties like free speech.
Flock's indiscriminate surveillance is in conflict with constitutional protections and numerous civil liberties groups such as the ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation arguing that the technology infringes on Americans' right to privacy under the Fourth Amendment. Despite repeated attempts from Flock to reform their system, it is apparent ALPR is problematic, insecure and can have devastating consequences for innocent individuals. Academics, researchers and experts overwhelmingly agree that there's a lack of evidence linking flock to crime reduction rates.
There is overwhelming evidence of abuse and misuse of ALPR systems across the country - and Pasadena's ALPR systems are no exception. Pasadena was notified that it was sharing ALPR information across the country, the city lacked ALPR data retention restrictions, and many residents have expressed privacy concerns over the years. Despite this, Pasadena Police says Flock is a "useful tool" - yes, it is useful in diverting resources that would otherwise go towards community oriented public safety solutions that don't infringe on our civil liberties.
1 Pasadena should join dozens of cities across the country who have ended their contracts with Flock, removed cameras and rejected any ALPR replacements such as Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Santa Clara County, Santa Cruz, and others.
Pasadena, choose your constituents. Restore trust, restore accountability and uphold our constitutional rights. End all ties with Flock now.
Destiny Rivera-Gomez
Pasadena, California 91106
2 Sabha, Tamer
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I You don't often get email from 1
Nick Rabb·
Wednesday, April 15, 2026 12:54 PM
Sabha, Tamer
4/15/26 Public Safety Committee Meeting Regarding Agenda Item 3 Learn why this is important
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Members of the Public Safety Committee,
Please find below my written correspondence to the committee concerning Agenda Item 3 of tonight's meeting on 4/15/26, to be included in the public record.
Thank you.
Best,
Nick Rabb
Thank you members of the Committee, for critically considering this item.
My name is Nicholas Rabb, I am a resident of Pasadena in District 2, and researcher at Cal State LA with a PhD in computer and cognitive science focused on society and technology.
I want to first clearly say that Flock Safety is a deeply flawed technology that poses a threat to Pasadena. Despite PPD's assurances of privacy via Flock disabling out-of-state access to California's Flock network, these data protections are insufficient. There are many more ways our data can get to federal agencies like ICE.
As some Council members have acknowledged, any Flock user within California could simply search Pasadena and personally tip off ICE. But even more frightening is that the ACLU of MA found that Flock's default user agreement with police in their state "gives the company the right to share data with federal and local agencies for 'investigative purposes' even if a local department chooses to restrict data to its own officers." [I] Flock could be coerced by the federal government or its agencies to provide data despite PPD's assurances. This renders their internal audit far too narrow and optimistic.
But beyond technical flaws with Flock, the project of building a surveillance network for policing is dangerous on a much deeper level.
When I was completing my PhD in Boston, I actually taught a course on surveillance technologies for two years. What I told my students is that surveillance technology never seems dangerous until it's used against you - until someone decides you 're worth watching because you look suspicious or are part of a dangerous group. And we know that those deemed dangerous are often the most vulnerable - whether it's poor people, Black people, Muslims, or immigrants. 1 And unfortunately, those who use these tools to surveil and punish people are frequently biased at best and explicitly hateful at worst.
Given our national political situation, I'd say the minor perceived benefits of stopping a few crimes with Flock or any other surveillance tool are vastly outweighed by their potential for misuse and even blatant malicious use. But, if there are no surveillance technologies in our city, there are no opportunities for misuse.
Therefore, I urge the Committee to reject Flock Safety and surveillance infrastructure as viable forms of achieving community safety. Specifically, I insist the Committee should:
1. 2.
3. Compel the Pasadena Police
4. Department to make their user agreement with Flock Safety public so the community can understand if our data can still be obtained by out-of-state agencies through contractual obligation;
5. 6.
7. 8. Disable and take down Flock
9. cameras around Pasadena to protect residents from being tracked and targeted;
10. 11.
12. 13. Move to not renew the contract
14. with Flock come September, instead using the time and money to invest in community-based safety infrastructure that does not rely on surveillance technologies or force-based policing.
15. We have a real oppo11unity here to protect our city by not succumbing to tempting arguments about safety through surveillance - a false premise - and instead, build a Pasadena where we keep each other safe.
Thank you for your time.
[1] Stanley, Jay. "Flock Can Share Driver-Surveillance Data Even When Police Departments Opt Out, And Other Flock Developments." ACLU News & Commentary. 10/24/25. <https://www.aclu.org/news/privacy-technology/flock-massachusetts-and-updates> 2 Sabha, Tamer
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< [email protected] >
Wednesday, April 15, 2026 1 :46 PM
Sabha, Tamer
Flock out of Pasadena
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MT Sabha,
I urge Pasadena City Council to put safety over surveillance and cut ties with Flock.
Flock ALPR cameras are being used for indiscriminate surveillance, tracking and targeting of countless individuals. While Flock, law enforcement and city government tout the benefits of automated license plate readers for public safety, in reality it endangers everyone - in particular immigrants and their families, people of color, people seeking sensitive healthcare, and the many exercising civil liberties like free speech.
Flock's indiscriminate surveillance is in conflict with constitutional protections and numerous civil liberties groups such as the ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation arguing that the technology infringes on Americans' right to privacy under the Fourth Amendment. Despite repeated attempts from Flock to reform their system, it is apparent ALPR is problematic, insecure and can have devastating consequences for innocent individuals. Academics, researchers and experts overwhelmingly agree that there's a lack of evidence linking flock to crime reduction rates.
There is overwhelming evidence of abuse and misuse of ALPR systems across the country - and Pasadena's ALPR systems are no exception. Pasadena was notified that it was sharing ALPR information across the country, the city lacked ALPR data retention restrictions, and many residents have expressed privacy concerns over the years. Despite this, Pasadena Police says Flock is a "useful tool" - yes, it is useful in diverting resources that would otherwise go towards community oriented public safety solutions that don't infringe on our civil liberties.
1 Pasadena should join dozens of cities across the country who have ended their contracts with Flock, removed cameras and rejected any ALPR replacements such as Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Santa Clara County, Santa Cruz, and others.
Pasadena, choose your constituents. Restore trust, restore accountability and uphold our constitutional rights. End all ties with Flock now.
2 Sabha, Tamer
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You don't often get email from
William Kelly . _
Wednesday, April 15, 2026 2:12 PM
Sabha, Tamer
Public Comment on Flock Item for PSC 4-15-26 (Or Subsequent) Meeting Learn why this is important
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Comment to Pasadena City Council
Time to Reconsider Contract with Flock Safety
Like its neighbor in South Pasadena (https://laist.com/news/south-pasadena-cancels-flock-safety contract-privacy-concerns), it's time for the City of Pasadena to review and likely cancel its use of Flock Safety automated license plate readers and other license plate reader systems. This request reflects repeated revelations and concerns about data privacy and the use of data gathered through the cameras by U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement to deport immigrants without due process.
The 2017 California Values Act (SB 54), with limited exceptions, prohibits state law enforcement agencies from providing information and assistance to ICE and other federal agencies, such Customs & Border Patrol, to enforce federal immigration laws
(https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill id=201720180SB54). Until you can launch and complete a review, you should direct your police department to restrict all access to data collected by the Flock devices and other license plate readers, except for internal use.
Since news broke of California data being shared with out-of-state law enforcement agencies for inappropriate uses, Flock claimed it imposed a firewall preventing California data from being tapped by law enforcement agencies in other states (https://www.404media.co/flock-removes-states-from- national-lookup-tool-after-ice-and-abortion-searches-revealed/). However, the Ventura County Sheriff's Office found that even though it opted in 2023 to prevent its data from being accessible though Flock's national lookup function, the office found in an audit that in one month alone a year ago that it's data was queried by out-of-state police agencies 364,000 times, including almost 300 times for immigration enforcement (https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/flock-license-plate readers-shared-data-with-out-of-state-federal-agencies/).
Last June, news reports revealed that California police agencies shared data with ICE and that one police agency in Escondido used Flock Safety automated license plate readers to track people participating in a demonstration against federal immigration policies 1 (https://calmatters.org/economy/technology/2025/06/cali fornia-police-sharing-license-plate-reader data/; https://www.404media.co/california-cops-investigate-immigration-protest-with-ai-camera system/).
Pasadena entered an agreement with Flock Safety in 2023 to install a network of automatic license plate readers at key intersections
(https://ww2.cityofpasadena.net/2023%20Agendas/Jul 17 23/AR%203.pdf). Since then, the cameras have been touted as useful in solving crimes. However, concerns have mounted about unauthorized sharing of information between local law enforcement and ICE, both in California and nationally. A recent news report by 404 media, for instance, detailed 4,000 instances of ICE gaining side-door access to data produced by the cameras from local law enforcement agencies, even in the sanctuary state of Illinois (https://www.404media.co/ice-taps-into-nationwide-ai-enabled-camera-network-data shows/). News of yet another data breach in Illinois prompted the Illinois Secretary of State to launch an inquiry into how license plate reader information is being handled (https://www.ilsos.gov/news/2025/june/250612d1 .pdf). The Secretary of State found that Flock Safety was in violation of Illinois requirements that restrict license plate reader data from going to federal agencies to enforce immigration laws (https://www.ilsos.gov/news/2025/august-25-2025-giannoulias aud it-finds-license-plate-reader-company-in-violation-of-state-law. html).
Last spring, the Denver City Council decided to review the city's contract with Flock Safety when the police department proposed expanding the number of cameras deployed. Councilmembers cited concerns that federal agents were gaining access to license plate reader data as participants in a multi-agency law enforcement task force in Northern Colorado (https://denver.granicus.com/player/clip/16871 ?view id=180&meta id=154991 0&redirect=true begin sa t minute 29). At the end of last month, Denver terminated its contract with Flock Safety (https://youtu.be/pviTkxnUpAU?si=45ClgggNYkrijXP8).
Similar concerns are now being raised in San Diego and in Texas, where the city of Austin canceled its contract with Flock Safety (https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/06/san-diegans-push-back-flock alpr-surveillance; https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2025/06/victory-austin-organizers-cancel-citys-flock alpr-contract). The action in Austin came in conjunction with news that a Texas police officer used a nationwide search of Flock Safety's license plate reader database to locate a woman who went out of state for an abortion. Abortion is all but banned in Texas (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/may/31/a-dystopian-surveillance-fear-has become-reality-in-texas). Indeed, the Reason Foundation observed that Flock Safety's database, which covers some 5,000 communities that use its system nationwide, can be used to access data nationwide as long as users, according to Flock, "are also opted into the National Lookup" service. It should be noted that Flock Safety users are not restricted to law enforcement agencies, but also include companies, homeowner and neighborhood associations, etc. (https://reason.com/2025/05/29/illinois-cops-gave-ice-access-to-more-than-5000-surveillance cameras-nationwide/). For instance, Home Depot stores, which have been a key locus for ICE raids in Southern California, use the Flock system along with a thousand others (https://foxsanantonio.com/newsletter-daily/san-antonio-retailers-turning-to-license-plate-readers-to help-curb-theft; https://losspreventionmedia.com/flock-safety-launches-first-ever-business-network-to- 2 strengthen-private-sector-security-collaboration/). In pursuit of its move fast and break things strategy, Flock late in 2024 was admonished for failing to obtain a private investigator's license for placement of automated license plate readers on the premises of private businesses by the Texas Department of Public Safety (https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/crime/article/flock-cease and-desist-letter-19795715.php).
More recently in California, the City of Santa Cruz canceled its contract with Flock and Oxnard suspended its contract due to a coding error that opened up its data to the company's national lookup feature for out of state agencies (https://www.kqed.org/news/12069705/santa-cruz-the-first-in california-to-terminate-its-contract-with-flock-safety ; https://www.edhat.com/ventura/news/oxnard police-suspend-flock-license-plate-readers-ventura-agencies-tighten-controls-after-out-of-state access/).
In conclusion, while it's arguable that automated license plate reader technology has public safety benefits, the growing and indisputable misuse of the technology--including by ICE to detain immigrants without due process, to arrest citizens who record raids on our streets, and to potentially intimidate people from exercising their First Amendment rights by attending demonstrations--makes immediate restriction of the data and a review of how data is shared and used an urgent matter.
The bottom line, as observed by Denver Councilmember Kevin Flynn, is that concerns over surveillance have always been present, but that "since January 20 [2025]" such concerns "have a new reality around them." It's time for Pasadena to follow the lead of Denver and other cities and carefully and publicly scrutinize the Flock Safety contract.
Bill Kelly
Resident of Neighboring South Pasadena
3 Sabha, Tamer
From:
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Harrison Fitch < [email protected] >
Wednesday, April 15, 2026 4:35 PM
Sabha, Tamer
Flock out of Pasadena
[ 1 ] CAUTION: This email was delivered from the Internet. Do not click links or open attachments unless you know the content is safe. Report phish using the Phish Alert Button. For more information about the Phish Alert Button view article "KB0011474" on the DolT portal.
MT Sabha,
I urge Pasadena City Council to put safety over surveillance and cut ties with Flock.
Flock ALPR cameras are being used for indiscriminate surveillance, tracking and targeting of countless individuals. While Flock, law enforcement and city government tout the benefits of automated license plate readers for public safety, in reality it endangers everyone - in particular immigrants and their families, people of color, people seeking sensitive healthcare, and the many exercising civil liberties like free speech.
Flock's indiscriminate surveillance is in conflict with constitutional protections and numerous civil liberties groups such as the ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation arguing that the technology infringes on Americans' right to privacy under the Fourth Amendment. Despite repeated attempts from Flock to reform their system, it is apparent ALPR is problematic, insecure and can have devastating consequences for innocent individuals. Academics, researchers and experts overwhelmingly agree that there's a lack of evidence linking flock to crime reduction rates.
There is overwhelming evidence of abuse and misuse of ALPR systems across the country - and Pasadena's ALPR systems are no exception. Pasadena was notified that it was sharing ALPR information across the country, the city lacked ALPR data retention restrictions, and many residents have expressed privacy concerns over the years. Despite this, Pasadena Police says Flock is a "useful tool" - yes, it is useful in diverting resources that would otherwise go towards community oriented public safety solutions that don't infringe on our civil liberties.
1 Pasadena should join dozens of cities across the country who have ended their contracts with Flock, removed cameras and rejected any ALPR replacements such as Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Santa Clara County, Santa Cruz, and others.
Pasadena, choose your constituents. Restore trust, restore accountability and uphold our constitutional rights. End all ties with Flock now.
Harrison Fitch
Pasadena, California 91107
2 Sabha, Tamer
From:
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To:
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Elly Levy < [email protected] >
Wednesday, April 15, 2026 3:50 PM
Sabha, Tamer
Flock out of Pasadena
[ 1 ] CAUTION: This email was delivered from the Internet. Do not click links or open attachments unless you know the content is safe. Report phish using the Phish Alert Button. For more information about the Phish Alert Button view article "KB0011474" on the DolT portal.
MT Sabha,
I urge Pasadena City Council to put safety over surveillance and cut ties with Flock.
Flock ALPR cameras are being used for indiscriminate surveillance, tracking and targeting of countless individuals. While Flock, law enforcement and city government tout the benefits of automated license plate readers for public safety, in reality it endangers everyone - in particular immigrants and their families, people of color, people seeking sensitive healthcare, and the many exercising civil liberties like free speech.
Flock's indiscriminate surveillance is in conflict with constitutional protections and numerous civil liberties groups such as the ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation arguing that the technology infringes on Americans' right to privacy under the Fourth Amendment. Despite repeated attempts from Flock to reform their system, it is apparent ALPR is problematic, insecure and can have devastating consequences for innocent individuals. Academics, researchers and experts overwhelmingly agree that there's a lack of evidence linking flock to crime reduction rates.
There is overwhelming evidence of abuse and misuse of ALPR systems across the country - and Pasadena's ALPR systems are no exception. Pasadena was notified that it was sharing ALPR information across the country, the city lacked ALPR data retention restrictions, and many residents have expressed privacy concerns over the years. Despite this, Pasadena Police says Flock is a "useful tool" - yes, it is useful in diverting resources that would otherwise go towards community oriented public safety solutions that don't infringe on our civil liberties.
1 Pasadena should join dozens of cities across the country who have ended their contracts with Flock, removed cameras and rejected any ALPR replacements such as Los Altos Hills, Mountain View, Santa Clara County, Santa Cruz, and others.
Pasadena, choose your constituents. Restore trust, restore accountability and uphold our constitutional rights. End all ties with Flock now.
Elly Levy
LOS ANGELES, California 90034-1256
2