Baton Rouge Police Chief TJ MORSE (photo courtesy of BRLA.gov)
State representative Danny McCormick has proposed a ban on all AI-powered Flock cameras in Louisiana. He says their recording of vehicle details and license plates violates citizens’ privacy, but Baton Rouge Police Chief TJ Morse says that is not true.
“All that it’s doing is capturing still photos of vehicles. It’s not running to see who that car belongs to, if that car’s insured, if the person has a drivers’ license; it is just catching still photos of vehicles as they travel on public roadways,” Morse explained.
Morse says the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that there is no expectation of privacy in a public space.
Flock Safety cameras have been used in millions of cases across the country. Morse says the images are invaluable when looking for missing persons and tracking down criminals.
“Dozens upon dozens, hundreds of cases solved every year; investigators being able to go back. All the vehicles we’re able to recover that were reported stolen, as they go past these cameras,” Morse noted.
Despite their utility to law enforcement, there has been growing opposition to Flock cameras nationwide. But Morse says any abuse of the technology has been due to misuse by law enforcement, not the cameras themselves.
“This is technology we’ve been using for more than 15, 17 years here in Baton Rouge. It’s nothing new. We haven’t had any cases that we’ve found where people were abusing it,” Morse said.
Comments