FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 20, 2023
License Plate Reader Pilot Program Begins
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA - After an extensive vetting process, City Council has approved and activated the Automated License Plate Reader program (FLOCK) Safety program for the Charlottesville Police Department.
Over the last year, the department hosted a series of meetings with local community groups and partners to discuss the FLOCK Safety Program and respond to any questions or concerns. Based on numerous meetings, which included community meetings, City Council meetings, and meeting with the Police Civilian Oversight Board, specific policy recommendations were presented to the city council and have now been implemented.
To recap, Flock is an extremely useful tool in helping us locate missing, endangered, and wanted individuals. In the event that stolen or flagged vehicles (Amber Alert, Wanted Vehicles, etc.) enter the City of Charlottesville, CPD will receive real-time alerts, notifying our officers, allowing us to deter and mitigate crime within our city. The sole purpose of FLOCK is to keep our Charlottesville community safe.
After educating the public and receiving significant buy-in for the program, a contract was developed and carefully reviewed by the City Attorney's Office and the Charlottesville Police Department. As a result, a policy was created using contract guidelines, best practices, and insight from the Executive Director of the Police Civilian Oversight Board. Training has also been conducted for our staff and detectives who are currently utilizing the system.
At this time, these are the current FLOCK Safety Cameras that have been installed in the City:
- Emmet St. N @ Barracks Rd
- U.S. 250 Bypass @ Rugby Rd
- Long St. @ Free Bridge
- Monticello Ave @ Druid Ave
- Roosevelt Brown Blvd @ Cherry Ave
- W. Main St. @ 10th St
- University Ave. @ 14th St
- Cherry Ave. @ Ridge St
- Ridge McIntire Rd. @ Preston Ave
- Preston Ave. @ Grady Ave
Protecting the privacy of our community is crucial; we want to stress that all data collected by the system will remain strictly confidential. Data captured by the FLOCK system will not be constantly monitored. The still-frame images captured are strictly for official law enforcement purposes only. In most cases, captured data will go unreviewed and will be automatically deleted in 7 days. Still-frame images captured will be restricted to law enforcement purposes only and will NOT be used for the following:
- Facial Recognition
- Personal Identification
- Traffic Enforcement
Anyone who unlawfully abuses their privileges will be reported to the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office and considered for prosecution.
The Executive Director of the Police Civilian Oversight Board, Inez Gonzalez, will be able to conduct random audits of the FLOCK system at her discretion. CPD’s Professional Standards Division will be responsible for providing a monthly audit.
Together, they will ensure proper, ethical, and lawful use of the FLOCK Safety Program.
We understand that with the advent of this technology, there may be confusion surrounding the privacy of our citizens. For this reason, we recommend that you view our Transparency Portal to see the policies set in place to protect the privacy of our citizens.
For any inquiries regarding the FLOCK system, please email flockinfo@charlottesville.gov.
To view important documents pertaining to the FLOCK Safety Program, please follow the links below:
Media Contact
Kyle Ervin
Public Safety Information Officer
City of Charlottesville
(434) 326-3043ervinkl@charlottesville.gov