# Flock cameras spark outrage in New York | Elizabeth Vargas Reports
# NewsNation — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Atj_254gWIA

ALL RIGHT. THERE'S A
DISPUTE IN A TOWN IN UPSTATE
NEW YORK. THAT IS I PLAYING
OUT IN TOWNS ACROSS AMERICA
ACTUALLY A SMALL PIECE OF
TECHNOLOGY IS CAUSING A BIG
DEBATE. IT'S CALLED A FLOCK
CAMERA AND IT'S JUST A FANCY
NAME FOR A CAMERA THAT CAN
RELY SONS PLATES. THE POLICE
DEPARTMENT IN TROY SAYS THE
CAMERAS ARE ESSENTIAL TO
SOLVING CRIMES, BUT RESIDENTS
SAY THEY'RE CONCERNED ABOUT
PRIVACY ASKING WHY THEIR
COMINGS AND GOINGS SHOULD BE
MONITORED WHEN THEY'VE DONE
NOTHING WRONG. IT'S A DEBATE
THAT'S LIKELY TO GET EVEN
BIGGER ALREADY 5,000 POLICE
DEPARTMENTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY
HAVE STARTED USING THESE FLOCK
CAMERAS, NEWS NATION'S
INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT
RICH MCHUGH, TRAVEL DETROIT, A
LOOK INTO IT AND JOINS US NOW.
RICH, WE HAVE SEEN BIG BATTLES
OVER THESE FLOCK CAMERAS PLAY
OUT IN TOWNS ACROSS AMERICA.
WHAT'S HAPPENING IN TROY?
WELL, YOU GOT THAT RIGHT,
ELIZABETH? THE PEOPLE HERE IN
TROY WHO WANT THESE CAMERAS
OUT OUR LOUD, THEY SAY THIS IS
SURVEILLANCE AND AGAINST THE
RIGHTS. BUT THE MAYOR AND THE
POLICE HERE ARE GOING TOE TO
TOE WITH THEM. THEY SAY THESE
ARE EFFECTIVE IN THIS IS
SIMPLY ABOUT COMMON SENSE.
WE'VE TRADED A LOT OF OUR
PRIVACY RIGHTS FOR
RESTRICTIONS ON OUR FREEDOM
THAT TRANSLATE INTO NO
ADDITIONAL SECURITY BUT
SECURITY THEATER. TEMPERS
FLARED AT A RECENT PUBLIC
MEETING HERE IN TROY, NEW
YORK. THERE'S NO REASON THAT
THESE PEOPLE NEED TO BE TAKEN
OUR INFORMATION ON A DAILY
BASIS. THAT'S WRONG AND
COLLECTING IT WITHOUT CONSENT
AND WITHOUT DOING ANYTHING
WRONG.
AND ISSUE THESE FLOCK
CAMERAS, AUTOMATED LICENSE
PLATE READERS. POLICE
POSITION. 26 OF THEM
THROUGHOUT THE CITY. THIS CITY
OF 50,000 KNOWN AS THE HOME TO
HOCHUL SAM FIRST INSTALLED THE
CAMERAS IN 2021. AFTER A
SERIES OF DRIVE-BY SHOOTINGS.
NUMBER ONE THING THAT FOLKS
WANT AND THEY WANTED MORE
CAMERAS. THEY WANT MORE INFO,
PLEASE COUSINS, CARMELO
MONTELLO, LIFELONG RESIDENT OF
TROY RAN FOR MAYOR ON REDUCING
CRIME IN 2023. SHE DOUBLED
DOWN ON THE LICENSE PLATE
READERS OR LPRS FOR SHORT,
THAT WILL BE OURS ARE A
CRITICAL TOOL.
IN TERMS OF SOUTH, IN
EVERYTHING FROM HOMICIDE TO
HARASSMENT TO DOMESTIC
VIOLENCE. SHE NAME WE USE THEM
CONSTANTLY. CHIEF OF POLICE,
DANIEL, THE WOLF SAYS THEY ARE
ESSENTIAL. IT'S NOT JUST MAJOR
CRIMES. I MEAN, IT'S STOLEN
VEHICLES.
IT'S MANY TIMES IT'S A
MISSING OR ENDANGERED PERSON.
BUT WE HAVE A PLATE FOR A
VEHICLE THAT THAT PERSON MAY
HAVE LEFT. THEN YOU ARE ABLE
TO FIND THEM IN A THEM AND GET
THEM THE HELP THAT THEY NEED.
THE ACLU, WHICH IS FIGHTING
THE TREND NATIONWIDE WITH
SPOKE AT THE RECENT MEETING.
SUCH WARRANTLESS
SURVEILLANCE ON THE MINDS ARE
CONSTITUTIONAL PROTECTIONS IN
THE WAKE OF THE ICE
IMMIGRATION OUTRAGE THIS PAST
YEAR. SOME CITIES LIKE DAYTON,
OHIO, SUSPENDED ITS USE OF
FLOCK CAMERAS WHEN THEY
DISCOVERED THE POLICE THERE
USE THE DATA OUT FOR
IMMIGRATION PURPOSES,
PROMPTING OUTRAGE FROM GROUPS
LIKE FLOCK. BUT MAYOR MENTELLA
SAYS THEY'RE HELPING TO REDUCE
OVERALL CRIME HERE DOWN 15%
YEAR OVER YEAR. HOW WOULD YOU
WEIGH THAT VERSUS THE PRIVACY
CONCERNS OF THE RESIDENTS
HERE? SURE. THERE'S A I DO NOT
TAKE LIGHTLY CHEST, PROTECTING
PEOPLE'S DATA. I DON'T WANT MY
DAD EXPLAINED SHE SAYSTHEY
HAVE MADE STEPS TO SAFEGUARD
THE DATA. IT'S OUR DATA.
IT'S OUR JOB TO PUT
POLICIES IN PLACE TO PROTECT
AND YOU SAY 1000% OF TE
QUICKLY, THE DATA IS NOT BEING
SHARED. WE ARE SAYING
UNEQUIVOCALLY WE HAVE NO
EXAMPLES WHERE DATA IS THEN
SHARED WHERE IT'S COMPROMISED
OR ANYTHING. TO THAT DEGREE.
WE DON'T SHARE NATIONALLY. WE
DON'T EVEN SHARE STATEWIDE. WE
CAN'T USE IT FOR ANY KIND OF
IMMIGRATION I DON'T UNDERSTAND
THAT THE APPREHENSION THAT
PEOPLE HAVE BECAUSE AS FAR AS
AN INVASION OF PRIVACY, IT'S A
MOMENT IN TIME. IT TAKES A
SNAPSHOT OF THE VEHICLE IN THE
PLATE. THERE ARE SO MANY FOLKS
OUT THERE RIGHT NOW LITERALLY
CARVILLE, ED, KEEP UP THE
FIGHT. WE WANT CAMERAS.
WE SEE THAT WE'RE SEE FOR
HERE IN THE CITY. SO CAMERAS
ARE STAYING. CAMERAS ARE
STAYING AS LONG AS I'M
NOW THE CITY COUNCIL HAS
TRIED TO KILL THIS PROGRAM AND
THESE CAMERAS, THOUGH THEY'VE
AGREED TO A 60 DAY PERIOD OF
REVIEW OF THE REVIEW. THE
EFFECTIVENESS OF THIS. IT'S
CONCEIVABLE, ELIZABETH, THIS
IS GOING TO HEAD TO COURTS. IF
IT DOES A SIMILAR SITUATION IN
VIRGINIA, A CROPPED UP IN A
DISTRICT COURT THERE RULED THE
BEES CAMERAS WERE DONE WERE
NOT INFRINGING ON THE RIGHTS
OF