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On Monday, April 7, 2025, Fort Mitchell became the latest city to pull the plug on automated license plate readers after residents packed a city council meeting to voice concerns about government surveillance. The city’s five Flock Safety cameras were immediately disconnected, and Mayor Greg Pohlgeers confirmed the contract will not be renewed.
The decision caps a growing rift between law enforcement’s use of ALPR technology and public skepticism over privacy erosion. While similar systems have helped police in nearby West Chester and Mason track suspects and solve crimes rapidly, Fort Mitchell’s residents argued that the convenience of crime-fighting does not justify what they called an “inescapable web of surveillance.”
“Fort Mitchell is not renting license plate readers for individuals. It’s renting access to a surveillance platform controlled by a private company in Atlanta, and that company decides what the cameras do,” one resident told the council. Another resident added, “These cameras are building an inescapable web of surveillance, which is un-American.” The comments reflected a broader national unease about the proliferation of automated tracking systems, which have been deployed in thousands of communities across the U.S.
Mayor Pohlgeers acknowledged the city’s police department had used the cameras as a secondary tool—not a primary crime-fighting method—and said the department would continue to operate effectively without them. “As we’ve said before, it was another tool to use. It wasn’t a primary tool to stop crime, but it’s something we used in addition to, and I think we will be just fine without it,” he said. He emphasized that the decision was driven by the need to maintain public trust. “We work for the citizens of Fort Mitchell, so we listened to the voices and we made a decision.”
The move comes amid a national reckoning over Flock Safety, a company that has aggressively marketed its cameras to police departments while facing criticism from civil liberties groups. The American Civil Liberties Union has repeatedly warned that ALPR systems create searchable databases of innocent people’s movements without a warrant, chilling constitutional rights. In a 2023 report, the ACLU noted that one Flock camera can capture thousands of plates per day, and the data is often shared across jurisdictions, raising the risk of abuse.
Flock Safety itself has tried to address privacy concerns by upgrading its “guardrails” for transparency, security, and data retention. In a blog post on its website, the company outlined new measures including automatic deletion of non-hit plates after 30 days and stricter access controls. Yet critics argue that such self-regulation is insufficient without independent oversight and clear legal standards. Fort Mitchell’s residents clearly were not convinced by the company’s promises.
Fort Mitchell is not alone in reassessing its relationship with Flock. In July 2024, nearby Newport, Ky., ended its pilot program with the company and opted against installing permanent cameras. Several other cities, including Portland, Maine, and Oakland, California, have also limited or banned the use of ALPRs in recent years. The trend signals a growing backlash against mass surveillance, even as law enforcement agencies continue to advocate for the technology as a force multiplier.
Data from the Police Executive Research Forum suggests that ALPRs can be effective in recovering stolen vehicles and locating missing persons. In Mason, Ohio, for example, Flock cameras helped investigators track a suspect’s car within minutes after a deadly shooting at Carter Lumber. In Springfield Township, the cameras assisted in locating an 80-year-old man reported missing. But proponents of the technology often struggle to quantify its overall impact on crime reduction, while critics point to the lack of evidence that such surveillance systems reduce violent crime rates.
For Fort Mitchell, the decision to shut down the program was swift. Mayor Pohlgeers said the city council listened to residents’ concerns and acted accordingly. “We made a decision that reflects the values of our community,” he said. The five
