Jackson police officials defend Flock cameras at oversight meeting as council renews grant funding

First reported: September 14, 2026 · 1 source

Jackson Police Chief Christopher Simpson told the city's Community Police Oversight Commission that Flock Safety license plate readers speed up investigations but that weak governance, policy or training in any agency creates room for misuse. His comments came three days after the Jackson City Council approved, in divided votes, grant funding to continue operating the department's 10 cameras despite skepticism from some residents. Jackson County Sheriff Gary Schuette, whose office runs six cameras and shares the federal grant money, said his agency audits camera access and disputed characterizations of the system as mass surveillance.

Why this matters

Jackson shows a local oversight body pressing police on ALPR data retention and access controls while Michigan lacks a statewide law governing the technology, leaving policy questions to individual agencies and city councils.

Key facts

Jackson City Council approved grant funding for the police department's 10 Flock cameras in divided votes; the county sheriff's office operates six more and shares the federal grant.
Simpson said officers do not monitor the cameras, which capture still images rather than video, and that system access requires a case number.
Simpson said Flock is cutting its data storage period from 30 days to seven, and noted that investigations can take longer than a week.
The Washington Post reported that at least 50 officers nationwide have been charged or accused of unauthorized plate-reader use; Schuette called that a small figure relative to roughly 750,000 U.S. officers.
Sen. Jim Runestad, R-White Lake, introduced a bill in July to regulate plate-reader systems in Michigan; it was referred to the Committee on Civil Rights, Judiciary and Public Safety and has not been enacted.

Sources

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

Jackson police leaders defend Flock cameras, but acknowledge misuse risk, data concerns (MLive.com, September 14, 2026)

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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 September 20, 2026. Corrections: blockflock@bytebunny.io. See all documented incidents or search the full article archive.