Massachusetts law enforcement can't withhold information about the locations of automatic license plate reader (ALPR) technology from the public, a superior court judge has ruled. It's the latest speed bump to a swelling nationwide surveillance network spurred by controversial Flock cameras. The decision ends a three-year court battle between the ACLU of Massachusetts and the state police, following the civil society group's 2023 lawsuit against the state for refusing to disclose records on the locations of ALPRs and the use of the public's data by police.
You May Also Like
At the time, the state was holding an estimated 290 million records used to track motorists and monitor vehicle activity. The judge determined that state police could not justify withholding the information from the public and ordered an immediate release of ALPR records.
Mashable Light Speed
"Over the past year, public outrage about secretive police surveillance has exploded across Massachusetts and the nation," said Kade Crockford, director of technology and justice programs at the ACLU of Massachusetts. "People from cities and towns across the state have been organizing to push back against local police adoption of Flock and other license plate readers. But what many residents don’t know is that the Massachusetts State Police maintains its own statewide network of license plate readers." The explosion of ALPR surveillance systems, enabled by the integration of sophisticated AI, has prompted concern from privacy advocates and free speech organizations. Communities have pushed back against the growing presence of Flock cameras, often engaging in guerrilla tactics to expose and disable them.
