Dickson County Commission Advances Flock Camera Policy After Lengthy Discussion on Privacy and Oversight
Dickson, TN — The Dickson County Commission spent more than 10 minutes Tuesday discussing a proposed policy governing the county's new Flock license plate reader camera system, with commissioners raising questions about privacy, data retention and how the technology will be used.
The policy, which will be considered for final approval during the commission's regular meeting, would formally establish rules for operating the camera system while giving the County Commission oversight through an official resolution.
Sheriff Tim Eads said the policy was developed jointly with County Attorney Brian Ragan after commissioners previously approved the purchase of the cameras but had not adopted formal operating procedures.
"This gives y'all some oversight," Eads told commissioners. "If anything goes wrong."
The sheriff described the policy as following industry best practices while balancing modern law enforcement technology with constitutional protections.
"There’s a lot of controversy with LPR technology in general," Eads said. "It's a force multiplier, and we want to be able to use technology to protect people's constitutional rights."
How the system works
Throughout the discussion, Eads emphasized that the cameras are not constantly tracking law-abiding motorists.
Instead, he said, each camera simply photographs a license plate and compares it against existing law enforcement "hot lists" maintained through state and federal databases, such as stolen vehicles, wanted persons and Amber Alerts.
"It looks at a tag and it looks at a hot list. That's it," Eads explained.
If a license plate is not associated with a criminal investigation or law enforcement alert, the information is automatically deleted.
"It doesn't run your tag," Eads said. "If that tag's not associated with a crime or on a hot list, then the information is deleted within 90 days."
He added that deputies cannot simply search the system out of curiosity.
"We're just looking at hot lists," Eads said. "You've got to be on a hot list."
Questions about privacy
Commissioners questioned whether motorists have an expectation of privacy while driving on public roads and whether the system could eventually become an invasion of privacy.
One commissioner noted that many residents have expressed concerns about government cameras photographing vehicles.
County Attorney Brian Ragan acknowledged the issue remains the subject of court cases around the country.
He said one legal argument is that people traveling on public roads generally have no expectation of privacy because anyone can observe or photograph vehicles in public.
However, he noted that law enforcement's ability to compare license plates against criminal databases presents additional legal questions that courts have not fully settled.
"I don't know how the courts will ultimately rule on that," Ragan said.
Data retention and oversight
Commissioners also questioned how long information remains in the system and who can access it.
Eads said any data unrelated to criminal investigations is automatically removed after 90 days.
If a license plate becomes part of an active criminal investigation, that information is moved into a separate case file rather than remaining in the camera database.
The sheriff also pledged to provide annual reports to the County Commission detailing:
how many license plate reads occurred,
the results generated by the system,
any misuse of the technology.
Not every deputy will have access to administer the system, he added, and outside agencies cannot freely search Dickson County's database.
"If California is doing an investigation, they can't just log into our reads," Eads said. "They have to contact us."
Can the cameras issue traffic citations?
One commissioner asked about reports circulating on social media claiming motorists had been stopped after cameras detected expired license plates.
Eads said that, to his knowledge, the cameras are not being used that way.
"The Flock Safety camera is there for something bigger and more important than an expired tag," he said.
He also clarified the cameras do not enforce speed limits or automatically issue citations.
"No speed enforcement," Eads said.
Instead, the technology is intended to help investigators locate stolen vehicles, missing persons and suspects connected to criminal cases.
Already proving useful
Although Dickson County's camera network is still being installed, Eads said similar technology has already helped local law enforcement.
He cited a recent case in which Flock cameras assisted in recovering a stolen vehicle after the City of Dickson received an alert that the vehicle had passed through the area.
Drawing on his previous law enforcement experience, Eads said similar systems have also helped solve missing person cases and armed robberies.
"It's a pretty force-multiplying tool for law enforcement," he said.
Formal policy
Mayor Bob Rial said adopting the policy as a county resolution gives the commission authority beyond simply approving the camera purchase.
"It gives us a little bit of a hammer on that," Rial said, explaining that making the policy part of a formal resolution makes it enforceable if the technology is ever misused.
Following the discussion, commissioners voted unanimously to move the policy to the regular commission meeting for final consideration.