Iraq War veteran sues York County, SC deputies over stop at gunpoint after Flock plate misread

Event: February 1, 2024 · First reported: September 16, 2026 · 1 source

Steven Melvin, 42, an Iraq War veteran from Lake Wylie, South Carolina, is suing the York County Sheriff's Office and three officers over a February 2024 stop that his lawsuit says was triggered by a Flock Safety license plate reader alert incorrectly flagging his black BMW as stolen. The complaint alleges a deputy approached with his gun drawn and that Melvin was made to kneel with his hands up for about five minutes before deputies confirmed the vehicle was his. The suit, filed in state court in June and later moved to federal court, claims excessive force, false imprisonment and negligence. The sheriff's office denies violating his rights and has asked a federal judge to dismiss the case; no trial date has been set.

Why this matters

The case tests whether a mistaken automated plate-reader alert can support a constitutional claim when it leads to a high-risk stop, an issue with implications for the thousands of agencies that treat ALPR hits as grounds for action.

Key facts

Case: Melvin v. York County Sheriff's Office et al., pending in U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina; no trial date set.
Attorneys for the sheriff's office and deputies argue a mistake of fact leading to a Fourth Amendment seizure is not itself a constitutional violation and that the force used was not objectively unreasonable.
Internal records cited in local reporting attributed the misread first character to a tinted or obstructive plate cover; Melvin was released with a warning rather than a citation.
Sheriff Tony Breeden has said the cameras helped close more than 250 cases and that a transparency portal is being developed.
Flock's policy acknowledges plate translations can be incomplete or inaccurate and says users should verify alerts, treating them as investigative leads.

Sources

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

Iraq War Veteran Claims Flock Camera Error Led to Police Stop at Gunpoint (Military.com, September 16, 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 17, 2026. Corrections: blockflock@bytebunny.io. See all documented incidents or search the full article archive.