LAPD may renegotiate its contract with AI-powered license plate readers

Over the weekend, the Los Angeles Police Department let its contract with Flock Safety license plate readers expire. Still, the department said it would continue to collaborate with the AI-powered technology company to see whether it can renegotiate its partnership and pursue a potential new contract.

Flock operated approximately 138 pole-mounted cameras across the city, which scanned vehicle-mounted license plates, but the contract expiration came after LAPD said it would suspend Flock access due to what it said were “recent concerns” about “a lack of clarity” regarding terms of data ownership, security, privacy, sharing and breach notification.

Community organizers who have denounced the use of mass surveillance tools like Flock Safety said these data security and privacy breach concerns are not new, and instead issues that they have brought forward to the police commission meetings. 

Grace Zhang from the Stop LAPD Spying Coalition told CALÓ News she doesn’t think LAPD will actually end all relationships with Flock Safety and instead will reform and sanitize its contract to continue surveillance in the city. 

“LAPD will never actually wanna end their contract with Flock Safety. They have a very mutually beneficial relationship. Flock helps LAPD more effectively criminalize our communities, while LAPD's data will help Flock continue to sell it to data-brokering companies,” Zhang said. 

According to LAPD’s Comprehensive Technology Report, the Flock Safety license plate readers are used to help catch wanted suspects and identify stolen cars, but community organizers say everyday drivers are being surveilled without their consent. 

"On a daily basis, between 70 and 200 times, you are caught on camera, not just through closed-circuit television [but through] traffic lights, license plate readers and other cameras around us,” said Mau Trejo, director of communications with Students Deserve. “Our city prioritizes the use of surveillance as a means of safety, but that is not what is happening.”

On Tuesday, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell spoke at a police commission meeting, defending the license plate reader technology. 

“Automated license plate reader technology is a very valuable investigative tool—helping locate violent offenders, identify stolen vehicles and generate leads that assist in solving crimes and delivering justice for victims,” he said. “At the same time, we have a responsibility to ensure that any technology we use is supported by strong protections for individual privacy and the security of the information entrusted to us.”

In the Milwaukee Police Department, police officers, including Detective Tehrangi Chapman, were criminally charged in July 2026 for misusing the department's Flock Safety license plate reader system to track and stalk two victims. 

In Kansas City, a former Bonner Springs Police Department detective was charged with 18 counts against Kyle Rector, 39, including child sexual exploitation, stalking and breach of privacy.

Court documents reveal that Rector used license plate readers such as Flock cameras to track his wife. 

Lateecia Frederick, organizer with the Downtown Women's Action Coalition and the Los Angeles Community Action Network, said Flock's harm goes beyond stalking, ranging from mass deportations, targeting abortion seekers and sex workers to spying. 

“Flock has been used as a tool to criminalize and racially profile our communities, as well as it's been weaponized to track abortion seekers and assist with ICE. All these actions are to contain and control us, not to serve and protect us,” Frederick said. 

LAPD has not given any further details on the negotiation efforts, but organizers say they do not want reform to these contracts and instead demand an end to the LAPD's partnership and a future relationship with Flock Safety.