OSHKOSH (NBC 26) — Green Bay's mayor and police chief announced the city will keep its automated license plate reading cameras, introducing a new policy aimed at addressing privacy concerns surrounding the Flock Safety system.
The city's new ALPR policy would reduce how long data is retained from 30 days to 7, and establishes a higher bar for searching the database. Officers must input a reason and a case number before conducting a search.
Mayor Eric Genrich defended the technology, describing public safety as the first civil right.
"When we see a technology that's constitutional, non-invasive and highly effective at solving crimes, and thereby preventing crimes, we'd be derelict of our duties if we didn't deploy it," Genrich said.
Not all Green Bay residents share that view. When I spoke with neighbors on the street, some expressed concern about being tracked.
"Personally, I don't like knowing that I'm watched everywhere I go with Flock. I've heard that they've been using it for bad as well and other cities are getting rid of it and it's like, why not us?" Aiden Woelz said.
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"I have friends in the car community and I feel like they're misusing it altogether. They're being used illegally, tracking data that should not be tracked, and I just feel like I'm being watched from everywhere I go," Syreana Weller-Titus said.
When asked about balancing public safety against Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches, Genrich acknowledged the limits of his legal expertise while standing behind the city's decision.
"I'm not a constitutional attorney, so I'm not gonna make an argument on those grounds necessarily. But you know, in our determination, obviously working with our city attorney, this is a constitutional, legal, and like I said, highly effective tool that we have," Genrich said.
Green Bay's decision comes after Winnebago County, Fond du Lac County, and multiple cities across the state announced their suspension of Flock Safety cameras.
The Green Bay Police Department is encouraging public feedback; residents can submit their comments by this link.
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