Flock Cameras Will Be Reactivated in Wenatchee

The Wenatchee Police Department will soon reactivate its Flock Safety license-plate reading cameras after taking them offline late last year, the department announced this week.

The cameras photograph and catalog license plates and vehicle characteristics. They do not record video or monitor for traffic violations, and are not used for speed enforcement, according to the department.

Wenatchee shut the cameras off on the advice of legal counsel following questions about privacy and public records access, including federal immigration enforcement's use of the system. East Wenatchee police and the Douglas County Sheriff's Office took a more limited step, cutting off national access to the Flock network that had been available to ICE and U.S. Border Patrol. Wenatchee and East Wenatchee are among several Washington agencies that have suspended some or all use of Flock cameras.

A key issue for Wenatchee was cost. Flock data is considered a public record, and the department faced records requests that officials said could have cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to fulfill.

"A lot of it came down to a money situation," Mayor Mike Poirier said on KPQ's "Agenda" program. "I'm not going to let our taxpayer money pay for hundreds of thousands of dollars for somebody trying to abuse the system." Poirier said cities also face potential financial penalties if they fail to respond to records requests in a timely manner.

Poirier and Police Chief Edgar Reinfeld both said the camera system is a valuable investigative tool. Reinfeld said it has helped in more than 100 cases. The cameras were used in the initial search for Travis Decker, the Wenatchee man accused of killing his three daughters last year, and similar systems helped solve the Brown University campus murders.

A state senator has proposed legislation intended to address concerns raised by Poirier and others. The bill would require law enforcement agencies to delete Flock footage within 72 hours, except in violent crime investigations, and would require outside entities to obtain a warrant to access the data.

The Wenatchee Police Department said its goal is to use the technology responsibly to enhance public safety, help recover stolen vehicles, and assist criminal investigations while respecting community privacy.