Milwaukee County Committee Advances Resolution to Remove Park License Plate Cameras

Milwaukee County’s Parks and Culture Committee unanimously advanced a resolution to remove 42 Flock license plate-reading cameras from county parks by the end of the year; the full County Board has not yet made a final decision. The amended plan would allow officials to consider conventional security cameras without automated license plate tracking or facial recognition. Supporters cited privacy and civil-liberties concerns, while the Sheriff’s Office said the cameras help investigate serious crimes and address limited patrol resources; some supervisors favored retaining surveillance with tighter safeguards. Separately, a Simpsonville, South Carolina, councilwoman proposed banning traffic-surveillance cameras, with the measure expected to be discussed at an upcoming meeting.
The proposed ban would cover not only Flock equipment but also other automatic license plate-reading cameras, ending their use at 11 county parks.
The Sheriff’s Office proposed specific safeguards for any continued surveillance: limiting access to 47 authorized users, ending data sharing with outside agencies, and potentially cutting data retention to 48 hours.
Chief Deputy Brian Barkow said the technology had helped investigate violent crimes, shootings, sexual assaults and stolen-vehicle cases in county parks.
Some local leaders pointed to reported misuse of Flock technology by law-enforcement members in Wisconsin and elsewhere as part of their concerns about data extending beyond conventional criminal investigations.
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