Documented Incident
Mauldin, SC officer fired after alleged 166 Flock lookups tracking a former partner
Event: August 3, 2026 · First reported: August 14, 2026 · 13 sources
The South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy said a Mauldin police officer, Ellie Hammond, was terminated on Aug. 3 after allegedly using the Flock automated license plate reader system 166 times between March and July to track a vehicle belonging to a former significant other. Officials said she entered false justifications for the searches, including warrant checks, traffic infractions and welfare checks. The academy confirmed Hammond was not arrested and that no charges have been filed.
The case illustrates how ALPR audit logs can surface personal misuse of surveillance tools, and raises the question of whether agencies catch such patterns in real time or only after months of repeated searches.
Key facts
- 166 Flock searches on the same vehicle alleged between March and July, according to the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy
- Officer Ellie Hammond was terminated by the Mauldin Police Department on Aug. 3
- Officials said stated search reasons — warrant check, traffic infraction, welfare check — were untrue
- No arrest has been made and no criminal charges have been filed, per the CJA
Timeline
- August 14, 2026Mauldin officer accused of using FLOCK cameras over 160 times to track ex
- August 17, 2026South Carolina officer fired for allegedly misusing Flock cameras
- August 17, 2026South Carolina officer fired for allegedly using Flock cameras to run ex's plate 166 times
- August 24, 2026Mauldin police officer fired after tracking ex with Flock camera system
Sources
This summary was written from the published reporting below and links to it; BlockFlockNow does not reproduce article text.
- Mauldin officer accused of using FLOCK cameras over 160 times to track ex (FOX Carolina News, August 14, 2026)
- South Carolina officer fired for allegedly misusing Flock cameras (gulfcoastnewsnow.com, August 17, 2026)
- South Carolina officer fired for allegedly misusing Flock cameras (kcci.com, August 17, 2026)
- South Carolina officer fired for allegedly misusing Flock cameras (kcra.com, August 17, 2026)
- South Carolina officer fired for allegedly misusing Flock cameras (wmtw.com, August 17, 2026)
- South Carolina officer fired for allegedly misusing Flock cameras (koco.com, August 17, 2026)
- South Carolina officer fired for allegedly using Flock cameras to run ex's plate 166 times (wbaltv.com, August 17, 2026)
- Upstate officer fired, accused of using FLOCK cameras to run ex's plate 166 times, records show (WYFF, August 14, 2026)
- South Carolina officer fired for allegedly using Flock cameras to run ex plate 166 times (nypost.com, August 17, 2026)
- South Carolina police officer fired for tracking ex-partner via Flock camera (washingtontimes.com, August 18, 2026)
- South Carolina Police Department Says Officer Used Flock Cameras to Stalk Ex-Boyfriend 166 Times (breitbart.com, August 18, 2026)
- South Carolina Police Department Says Officer Used Flock Cameras to Stalk Ex-Boyfriend 166 Times (breitbart.com, August 18, 2026)
- Mauldin police officer fired after tracking ex with Flock camera system (Greenville Online, August 24, 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 August 25, 2026. Corrections: blockflock@bytebunny.io. See all documented incidents or search the full article archive.