The Crossville City Attorney said legal precedent from the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals supports the use of Flock cameras because motorists have no constitutional expectation of privacy regarding their license plates.
Attorney Randy York said the federal court system recently addressed the technology in an Ohio case.
“And it’s important to note that this case said that as it related to Flock cameras, that there is no expectation of privacy in a license tag,” York said. “There’s a doctrine called the Plain View doctrine, which under Tennessee law, Tennessee law requires that the license tags be displayed.”
York said approximately 50 municipalities across Tennessee currently utilize the camera system. York said the devices in Crossville function strictly as license tag readers rather than broader surveillance tools.
“But here in Crossville, the Flock cameras are license tag readers only,” York said. “I have met with the police department, and before any officer can request something from one of these cameras, they have to be certified on the system.”
York said officers must pass a certification test before they are permitted to access the system. York said every data request is assigned a corresponding docket number through 911 to ensure the technology is only used for legitimate law enforcement inquiries.
“So somebody can’t be calling in saying, ‘I want to know about my brother-in-law, my sister, or my boyfriend, girlfriend, whoever,'” York said. “It’s got to be tied to a legitimate question.”
York said state law previously shielded these records from public disclosure, but a sunset provision that expired July 1 now makes the data available through open records requests. York said while the law allows for 90 days of record retention, Crossville only maintains access to the data for 30 days.
“And this case that I read said anytime you have new technology, you always have to balance that against the expectation of privacy and the individual’s rights,” York said. “But this time I would respectfully say I think they’re a little bit wrong on it, but I certainly appreciate the fact that they’re concerned about it.”
