Sheriff candidates in three Illinois counties split over ALPR data retention, from 7 to 30 days

First reported: October 14, 2026 · 1 source

Candidates for sheriff in Will, DuPage and Kane counties in Illinois gave differing answers on how long automated license plate reader data should be kept, with proposals ranging from seven to 30 days and two Kane County candidates declining to name a specific period. The question follows Flock Safety's Aug. 13 decision to lower its recommended default retention from 30 days to seven, which northern Illinois agencies have adopted unevenly. Scrutiny intensified after two former suburban officers, from Itasca and West Chicago, were charged Oct. 5 with felony misconduct for allegedly conducting unauthorized searches of Flock plate data, according to the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office.

Why this matters

Retention length, access limits and audit frequency are set largely by individual agency policy rather than statute, so elected sheriffs can shift the privacy terms of county-wide surveillance networks without legislative action.

Key facts

Flock Safety reduced its recommended data retention default from 30 days to seven on Aug. 13; Illinois agencies responded differently.
Will County candidates: Republican Jim Reilly proposed automatic deletion of non-evidentiary data after seven days; Democrat Patrick Jones favored 30 days unless data is preserved for an investigation.
DuPage County candidates: Republican Sean Noonan backed 30-day storage, access limited to detectives and supervisors, and audits every one to two months; Democrat Pete Coolidge supported moving to the seven-day default.
Kane County candidates: Democrat Amy Johnson emphasized audit logs and limited access but set no retention figure; Republican Rob Russell declined to name a period and proposed a public working group with law enforcement, judges and lawyers.
Two former officers from Itasca and West Chicago were charged Oct. 5 with felony misconduct over alleged unauthorized Flock searches; the charges are allegations and have not been adjudicated.

Sources

This summary was written from the published reporting below and links to it; BlockFlockNow does not reproduce article text.

7 days or 30? Sheriff candidates weigh license plate reader data policies (Shaw Local, October 14, 2026)

More from Illinois

Everything we have documented in Illinois, or search every Illinois 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 15, 2026. Corrections: blockflock@bytebunny.io. See all documented incidents or search the full article archive.