u/athensRaccoon

🚨 Flock has a hidden weakness many don’t know: public records requests.

Activists have successfully forced at least 8 cities to shut down Flock programs, either by exposing unauthorized data access or showing the footage was publicly accessible.

One of the most effective ways to take down Flock cameras? FOIA/PRA requests.

Here’s a template to file one in your city:

To the Custodian of Records:

Pursuant to the (your state here) Public Records Act (your state's public records act code.), I request access to and copies of the following public records relating to the (your local police) Police Department’s surveillance camera network reportedly consisting of more than 2,600 cameras deployed throughout the city.

Please provide records covering the period January 1, 2020 through present unless otherwise specified.

1. Policies and Legal Authority

All policies, procedures, memoranda, directives, or legal analyses governing:

-The deployment and operation of surveillance cameras within __________

-Any legal justification for the program under federal or state constitutional law

-Policies governing Fourth Amendment considerations or privacy protections

-Any City Council ordinances or resolutions authorizing the camera network

2. Contracts and Vendors

All contracts, agreements, memoranda of understanding, purchase orders, or amendments with vendors or service providers related to:

-Surveillance cameras

-Automated license plate readers

-Real-time crime centers

-Video analytics, facial recognition, or artificial intelligence

-Data storage or cloud services used for camera footage

Please include vendor proposals, RFP responses, and bid documents.

3. Camera Locations

Records identifying:

-The number and location of cameras deployed

-Maps, GIS datasets, or inventories of surveillance devices

-Any classification of cameras as public, private-partner, or third-party integrated cameras

(If precise coordinates are withheld, provide generalized location records or district-level inventories.)

4. Data Retention and Access

All records describing:

-Video retention schedules

-Policies for deletion or archiving of footage

-Which agencies or departments have access to the camera network

-Any data sharing agreements with other agencies including but not limited to:

-(your state) Highway Patrol -Federal agencies (FBI, DHS, ICE, etc.) -Regional task forces

5. Private Camera Integration Programs

All records relating to programs that integrate privately owned cameras into the police network, including:

-Agreements with homeowners, businesses, or HOAs

-Terms of participation

-Data access rights granted to the police department

6. Surveillance Technology Capabilities

Records describing whether the system includes or supports:

-Facial recognition

-License plate recognition

-Behavioral analytics

-Crowd detection

-Real-time monitoring centers

7. Crime Reduction Claims

All records, reports, studies, or internal analyses supporting claims that the surveillance network caused reductions in crime, including:

-Statistical reports

-Internal evaluations

-Communications discussing the effectiveness of the system

8. Communications

Emails, memoranda, and internal communications between (your city) Police Department personnel, City officials, or vendors referencing:

-Expansion of the camera network

-Privacy concerns

-Public opposition or legal review

Search terms should include: “camera network”, “surveillance cameras”, “real time crime center”, "Aerodome", "Raven", “ALPR”, “Flock”, “facial recognition”, and “camera integration”.

Format

Please provide records in electronic format via email or download link.

If any records are withheld, please provide the specific statutory exemption relied upon and produce all reasonably segregable portions of responsive documents.

Fee Waiver

This request concerns matters of significant public interest involving government surveillance and constitutional rights, and any fees should be waived or minimized.

I look forward to your response within the statutory timeframe.

I can’t find anything online to back up my memory.

I don’t understand why his Democratic supporters still believe Dexter Fisher is a Democrat. So I am hoping to create a thread prior to tomorrow’s election to catalog a list of people’s concerns about Dexter, in case some fence sitters stumble across this subreddit today in trying to decide who to vote for tomorrow, and for people who agree I encourage you to reach out to people you know in Athens who might be supporting him to make sure they’re fully aware of the situation we might be walking into.

I’ll get the ball rolling, but please fill in the blanks as you see fit. And for that matter, I’m open to being corrected if I’m missing something that explains these concerns as misunderstandings and shows me that Dexter has the best interests of the majority of Athenians in mind and also has the ability to execute supportive policies as mayor…

As was discussed here when the Flagpole article was first released (linked in comment below), if you look at his list of donors in the article linked above you see a who’s who of monied interests and declared Republicans in Athens and surrounding areas, including but not limited to:

“John and Susan Barrett of Barrett Club Properties; Burton & Burton balloon company owners Robert and Maxine Burton; James Hopkins of consulting firm Strategic Ventures Group; Watkinsville resident Mark Jennings of The Leaven Group, which unsuccessfully tried to redevelop Georgia Square Mall, and his wife Delores; Zaxby’s CEO Zachary McElroy of Watkinsville; construction company CEO Quaison Payne and his wife Carla; Cindy and Robert Scott of RAC Properties; and retirees Thomas and Lori Scott.

…Republican Watkinsville Mayor Brian Brodrick… Piedmont Athens Regional CEO [and Houston Gaines supporter] Michael Burnett of Watkinsville; UGA Police Chief Jeffrey Clark; ACC Commissioner John Culpepper… Carl Parks, a former GOP political strategist…”

Looking beyond his donors, some of his greatest hits that really don’t bode well for Athens if he’s elected:

• In addressing the cost of housing in Athens he actually said “if it’s too expensive, maybe live somewhere else” - so already giving up on improving things before he’s started. I imagine his developer donors appreciate that. Then again living in his gigantic (is it 7,000 or 8,000 sq ft?) house in Sedgefield I’m sure it’s hard to understand why someone would expect (or want /s) affordable housing anywhere in this city when such accommodations can be had instead.

• Supported the Charles Hardy settlement which isn’t much of a surprise if you look at his salary history which shows a marked increase in his last few years at UGA followed by two even higher years of salary at CCSD in a position that I can’t seem to find as existing anymore, all of which solidified his ability to take the highest possible retirement percentage he could receive and increased his retirement amount to approximately what he was making in the years prior to his sudden promotion to making six figures.

• Missed the vote on the declaring Athens as an LGBTQ+ safe haven, likely making his Republican donors very happy.

• Voted against EVs.

• Voted no on affordable housing and doesn’t seem to believe the government should have any say in such matters.

• Supports use of Flock cameras: “[When asked about it] Fisher pointed to recent crimes’ perpetrators being identified within 24 hours, echoing the cameras’ ability to support public safety and saying, ‘We can’t have it both ways.’”

• Despite vocal opposition to Data Centers, I worry that his affiliation with developers makes him more likely to support development of them in the future should his largest donors decide that’s what’s best for them.

Beyond that, I know there’s more, but I just wanted to start the discussion. It seems that the status of Athens as a blue dot in North Georgia is something Republicans really don’t want to continue, especially as the blue creeps further east from Atlanta. I think this could be a pivotal year for Athens if Dexter is elected and in the end he allows himself to be guided by the Republican beliefs of the people who are paying for his campaign. For those of you who agree, hopefully you’ll take this discussion beyond Reddit to the people in your life who might not otherwise be fully aware of this information about Dexter and are planning on voting for him tomorrow despite the fact that he might not actually align with their best interests and those of Athens. While he doesn’t pretend to be the progressive that someone like Fetterman did when he was campaigning, it’s pretty clear that in Fisher we would likely end up with another elected official who declares themselves to be a Democrat but operates in office as a Republican.