Documented Incident
ACLU of Wisconsin petitions state Supreme Court over warrantless ALPR database searches
First reported: October 19, 2026 · 4 sources
The ACLU of Wisconsin filed a petition asking the Wisconsin Supreme Court to take up a case directly challenging police access to automated license plate reader data without a warrant. The suit, brought on behalf of the Wisconsin Council of Churches, names the cities of Milwaukee, Green Bay, Racine and Kenosha as defendants and argues that warrantless searches of ALPR location histories violate the Wisconsin Constitution's ban on unreasonable searches and seizures. ACLU attorney Wes Haslam said the group is not asking to ban the cameras, but to require a warrant or a showing of exigent circumstances before police query the data. Officials in the four cities did not provide comment to WPR.
A ruling from the Wisconsin Supreme Court could set a statewide standard for whether accessing ALPR location histories counts as a search requiring a warrant, in place of what the ACLU describes as a patchwork of local policies.
Key facts
- The petition asks the Wisconsin Supreme Court to hear the case directly rather than proceed through lower courts.
- Defendants are the cities of Milwaukee, Green Bay, Racine and Kenosha.
- The plaintiff is the Wisconsin Council of Churches; the ACLU argues drivers have a reasonable expectation of privacy traveling to places of worship that host recovery groups, domestic violence services and political gatherings.
- The ACLU seeks a warrant requirement, or proof of exigent circumstances, rather than a ban on ALPR cameras.
- The conservative Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty filed a similar suit in Waukesha County the prior month, grounded in the U.S. Constitution.
- WPR reports multiple Wisconsin officers have been charged with or convicted of misusing ALPR databases to track former partners, and that several agencies have ended Flock contracts.
Sources
This summary was written from the published reporting below and links to it; BlockFlockNow does not reproduce article text.
- ACLU Wisconsin sues over warrantless use of Flock cameras (wpr.org, October 19, 2026)
- ACLU of Wisconsin question license plate reader privacy (Channel 3000, October 17, 2026)
- ACLU of Wisconsin question license plate reader privacy (Channel 3000, October 18, 2026)
- ACLU Wisconsin Sues Over Warrantless Use of Flock Cameras (Urban Milwaukee, October 19, 2026)
More from Wisconsin
Everything we have documented in Wisconsin, or search every Wisconsin article in the archive.
About this record
BlockFlockNow documents reported incidents involving Flock Safety cameras and automated license plate readers: council votes, contract decisions, misuse by authorized users, lawsuits, audits, and community response. Every record is reviewed by a person before publication. New to the topic? Start with What is Flock?, find meetings near you, or learn how to request your town's camera records.
Updated October 22, 2026. Corrections: blockflock@bytebunny.io. See all documented incidents or search the full article archive.