Documented Incident

Smithfield police gave Flock data to FBI without subpoena, violating 2025 Virginia law

Event: March 12, 2026 · First reported: October 11, 2026 · 6 sources

The Daily Press and The Virginian-Pilot reported that the Smithfield Police Department turned over Flock Safety license plate reader data to the FBI on March 12, 2026, the day of a fatal shooting at Old Dominion University, without the subpoena or court order required by a 2025 Virginia statute. The FBI passed the data to the ATF, which cited it in an affidavit in the federal gun-trafficking case against Kenya Chapman, who has pleaded guilty to four of seven counts and is set to be sentenced Dec. 18. Deputy Chief Chris Meier had said in April that the department believed the FBI qualified as a "law enforcement agency" under the law; the newspapers noted the statute's definition covers only Virginia state and local agencies. Isle of Wight Commonwealth's Attorney Georgette Phillips said she will not charge the officer, stating there was no intent to break the law.

Key facts

• Virginia's 2025 ALPR law bars sharing Flock data with federal agencies or out-of-state police absent a subpoena or court order, requires purging data after 21 days, and limits searches to criminal investigations, missing persons and human trafficking.
• Willful and intentional violation is a Class 1 misdemeanor carrying up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine.
• The ACLU of Virginia's policy director, Chris Kaiser, said the sharing appears to be a clear statutory violation and that the officer should be charged; Phillips declined to prosecute, citing lack of intent.
• The Richmond Police Department disclosed in April that an internal audit found a sergeant improperly shared Flock data with the FBI; his system access was revoked and Commonwealth's Attorney Colette McEachin declined to prosecute.
• A Virginia State Crime Commission survey late last year found nine unidentified Virginia agencies acknowledged sharing Flock data with a federal agency on a continuous basis.
• FBI and ATF spokespeople declined to say how the data was obtained; ATF said it received the data from the FBI, not directly from Smithfield police.

Timeline

• October 11, 2026Smithfield police shared Flock data with FBI after ODU shooting. That violated state law.
• October 13, 2026Smithfield Police Shared Flock Camera Data With FBI in ODU Shooting Case, Breaking State Law
• October 14, 2026Town admits sharing Flock data with FBI violated state law, says officer won’t be charged

Sources

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

• Smithfield police shared Flock data with FBI after ODU shooting. That violated state law. (The Virginian-Pilot, October 11, 2026)
• Smithfield officer won't be charged for sharing Flock data with the FBI (13newsnow.com, October 12, 2026)
• Smithfield Police Shared Flock Camera Data With FBI in ODU Shooting Case, Breaking State Law (Hoodline, October 13, 2026)
• Smithfield Police Shared Flock Camera Data With FBI in ODU Shooting Case, Breaking State Law (Hoodline, October 13, 2026)
• Town admits sharing Flock data with FBI violated state law, says officer won’t be charged (Smithfield Times, October 14, 2026)
• Town admits sharing Flock data with FBI violated state law, says officer won’t be charged (Smithfield Times, October 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 October 16, 2026. Corrections: blockflock@bytebunny.io. See all documented incidents or search the full article archive.