TEMPE, AZ — Tempe Police Chief Ken McCoy defended his department's use of Flock automated license plate readers, or ALPRs, as questions about privacy and data sharing follow police departments across the Valley.
Tempe police gave ABC15 an inside look at its Real Time Operations Center—a facility that uses advanced software to pull together traffic cameras, 911 calls, Flock license plate reader data and other technologies.
"This is all about public safety for us," McCoy said. "When a 911 call comes in, our operators pull up the [traffic] cameras in those locations, and they immediately start providing that information to our responding officers so our officers know what to expect when they arrive on scene," McCoy said
Police say the center has logged more than 1,200 investigative assists since it launched in the summer of 2024. It is currently staffed 6 hours a day, with a goal of around-the-clock staffing.
"We are not sitting surveilling these cameras, we are utilizing these cameras as a first response tool," McCoy said.
As operating hours expand, so may community concerns about privacy--particularly around ALPRs.
ALPRs capture photos of license plates and note the color, make and model of vehicles. Some save video.
When asked about additional guardrails, including whether Tempe's Flock data could be shared with federal immigration agents, McCoy said police are working to strengthen policies to ensure information is secure.
McCoy pointed to ongoing talks with Tempe's legal department and with Flock itself. At that point, his media relations manager directed further questions about Flock to the city.
ABC15's Zander Adams followed up with a city spokesperson, asking how many Flock cameras are currently running in Tempe, what happened with a 60-day trial of a competing system — Axon license plate readers — and what oversight exists to keep the data in check. That spokesperson said answers would be available early next week.
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