Mayor Jacques Gilbert announced that Apex’s public‑safety committee will convene on September 24 to review the town’s contract with Flock Safety, the company that provides automatic license‑plate readers (ALPR) for local law‑enforcement. The meeting, part of the town council’s public‑safety agenda, will produce recommendations for council members on whether to continue, switch providers, or end the use of the technology.
Community concerns drive the review
Residents have voiced strong opinions at recent council meetings. One citizen described Apex as “the peak of good living, not the peak of surveillance,” while another called photographing every car “radical.” A grassroots group called “DeFlock Apex” has organized to oppose the ALPR system, citing privacy and data‑retention worries.
Mayor Gilbert’s role and the committee’s mandate
Mayor Gilbert, who also serves on the two‑person review committee, said the town has heard “a lot from our community members – data retention concerns, privacy in general, just a multitude of things as it relates to the cameras we have deployed here.” The committee’s task is to assess the technology’s benefits against the privacy risks and to propose any needed safeguards.
Potential safeguards and alternatives
Supporters of the system argue that recent changes from Flock Safety could address many concerns. The company has pledged that every law‑enforcement user will be required to employ an auditing system that flags unusual searches, locks out the user while the query is reviewed, and ties each search to a specific criminal case. Apex already limits personnel access to ALPR data, conducts internal audits, and retains data for only 30 days.
Other towns in North Carolina are weighing similar decisions. Asheville recently voted to terminate its contract with Flock, and an officer in Mooresville was arrested after allegedly using the system to look up a personal contact more than 30 times.
Broader public‑safety technology under review
In addition to the ALPR review, Apex officials have sent an agreement for a public‑safety drone‑software platform to the council for further scrutiny. The town is examining how emerging technologies fit within its commitment to public safety while protecting constitutional privacy rights.
Next steps
The September 24 meeting will be open to the public, allowing residents to present testimony and ask questions. After the committee’s review, council members will vote on any recommended actions, which could include renegotiating the contract, adopting stricter oversight measures, or ending the ALPR program altogether.
Mayor Gilbert emphasized the importance of balancing law‑enforcement effectiveness with the community’s right to privacy, stating, “If we’re allowing these corporations to track us for their own profits, why aren’t we putting surveillance, if you want to call it that, in public places to capture information to maximize law‑enforcement capacity to do their job?” The upcoming council discussion will determine how Apex moves forward on this contentious issue.
Original reporting: WRAL Raleigh — read the source article.
