Lakeville to consider banning automated license plate readers

 LAKEVILLE -- Should Lakeville ban Flock cameras and other automated license plate readers?

That will be one of the issues to be considered at the Nov. 18 Special Town Meeting.

A new bylaw has been proposed that will prohibit their use. This is an effort to “protect the privacy, civil liberties and constitutional rights of residents and visitors of the Town of Lakeville from surveillance and biometric tracking,’’ according to the wording of the article.

The article was submitted by town resident and former select board member Maureen Candito.

Flock cameras are automated license plate readers that take still photos of passing vehicles and log vehicle characteristics. 

Candito said the Flock camera system that Lakeville police currently use includes “way too many unknowns.’’ The system is not owned by the department, she said, and information captured through the system can be accessible to others beyond the department.

“Something not owned by the police department is just a bad call,’’ she said. The department, she said, would have “no say’’ on how long information can remain in the Flock system and what it could be used for, Candito said.

She noted that the Lakeville Police Department “does a wonderful job’’ and she does not necessarily oppose them having “some kind of system’’ that they have complete control over.

Lakeville Police Chief Matthew Perkins opposes the ban and said the system has helped solve and prevent crimes.

“How can I speak against that?’’ he asked.

He noted one example of a resident who the department learned has been scammed and was about to put $20,000 into a Bitcoin machine.

Using the Flock system, they were able to track the victim’s movements and the location of her vehicle and found her before she was about to lose her money.

 The system has also been used to help recover stolen cars, Perkins said.

Middleboro has a similar citizen’s petition which voters will decide on at its Nov. 9 Fall Town Meeting.

The Middleboro petition would ban Flock cameras and other automatic license plate readers in town. If voted into effect, it would require the town to cut off its existing contract with Flock Safety.

The petition reads that it is designed “to protect the privacy and civil liberties of residents and visitors.”

The Middleboro Police Department currently operates four Flock cameras, although one has been vandalized and is out of operation.

Middleboro Police Chief Robert Ferreira said he thinks “there’s a misconception about how much information’s out there” regarding what people can access from Flock’s database. He said he understands people’s privacy concerns, but that the cameras are a helpful tool for criminal investigation.

The Lakeville Police Department currently uses one Flock camera, Perkins said, through a subscription service that costs the department $3,000 per year. 

The system has been operating for more than two years, he said, with “no problems.’’

Officers in some communities have been accused of using the system for personal use. “A couple of people in law enforcement abused their power,’’ he said, and that “tarnished’’ reputations of departments that have not misused the system.

Candito said that, regardless of voters’ ultimate decision, the topic is worth a public airing.

“I want to have meaningful discussions about our expectations as citizens and the role the government plays in being part of the system,’’ she said.