ALPR Abuse Archive

Documented abuse of government surveillance

214
People documented
62
People arrested
69
People charged
59
People fired
155
Agencies involved
120
Counties represented
30
States represented
37
Cases involving alleged stalking
160
Personal or non-law-enforcement searches
8,747
Known minimum improper searches
Minimum count only.
93
Cases discovered through audits

//About this archive

Published counts reflect sourced reporting and official records. Unknown details stay labeled as unknown instead of being inferred as fact.

//Recent cases

Rebekkah Robinson

Chesterfield County Police Department · Chesterfield, Chesterfield, Virginia
Charged; on administrative leave without pay Police-system access revoked; administrative leave without pay Automated License Plate Reader Improper ALPR usecomputer invasion of privacyunauthorized database access

Chesterfield County Police said coworkers reported concerns about Robinson's use of police systems, including Flock Safety ALPR cameras and VCIN/NCIC databases. Supervisors audited her queries and found suspicious transactions, prompting a criminal investigation. Specific searched persons, query counts, and motive have not been publicly disclosed.

Unnamed Texas City Police Department civilian employee

Texas City Police Department · Texas City, Galveston, Texas
Policy violation substantiated; suspended Suspended A dispatcher used Flock 42 times to check on her child, who was driving a vehicle the dispatcher owned.Automated License Plate Reader Family memberNon-law-enforcement usePersonal trackingUnauthorized search

A dispatcher used Flock 42 times to check on her child, who was driving a vehicle the dispatcher owned.

Unnamed Texas City Police Department sergeant

Texas City Police Department · Texas City, Galveston, Texas
Policy violations substantiated; suspended and demoted Demoted to officer; suspended A department audit found the unnamed sergeant used Flock 16 times for non-law-enforcement purposes. The specific target and purpose were not publicly disclosed.Automated License Plate Reader Non-law-enforcement useUnauthorized search

A department audit found the unnamed sergeant used Flock 16 times for non-law-enforcement purposes. The specific target and purpose were not publicly disclosed.

Unnamed Whiteside County Sheriff's Office deputy

Whiteside County Sheriff's Office · Morrison, Whiteside, Illinois
Administrative leave / investigation pending Placed on administrative leave The sheriff's office opened an internal investigation into a deputy's possible misuse of Flock camera data. The alleged searches and purpose have not been disclosed.Automated License Plate Reader Possible unauthorized / improper ALPR useinvestigation pending

The sheriff's office opened an internal investigation into a deputy's possible misuse of Flock camera data. The alleged searches and purpose have not been disclosed.

Janet Leonard

Franklin County Sheriff's Office · Louisburg, Franklin, North Carolina
Terminated / DA referral pending Fired An internal audit found that Leonard repeatedly used Flock cameras to track the movements of one private citizen without a legitimate law-enforcement purpose.Automated License Plate Reader Non-law-enforcement usePersonal trackingUnauthorized search

An internal audit found that Leonard repeatedly used Flock cameras to track the movements of one private citizen without a legitimate law-enforcement purpose.

Karl Gwynne

Pinellas County Sheriff's Office · Largo, Pinellas, Florida · September 30, 2026
Arrested / Charged / Pending Resigned Automated License Plate Reader Non-law-enforcement useOff-duty personal searchPersonal trackingRomantic interestUnauthorized search

Investigators allege Gwynne repeatedly used Flock ALPR and other law-enforcement databases to search for a woman he had arrested in 2010 and later pursued romantically, including while off duty.

Travis Stanton

Pinellas County Sheriff's Office · Largo, Pinellas, Florida · September 30, 2026
Arrested / Charged / Pending Resigned OtherAutomated License Plate Reader Non-law-enforcement usePersonal trackingRomantic interestUnauthorized ALPR/database search

Investigators allege Stanton ran the plate of a 17-year-old girl he was romantically interested in, using license-plate-reader and other law-enforcement databases to obtain her information and location.

Justin Brown

Hall County Sheriff's Office · Gainesville, Hall, Georgia · September 30, 2026
Arrested / Charged / Pending Fired Hall County's internal audit determined Brown accessed Flock approximately 250 times for personal purposes, involving at least two license plates.Automated License Plate Reader Non-law-enforcement usePersonal searchUnauthorized search

Hall County's internal audit determined Brown accessed Flock approximately 250 times for personal purposes, involving at least two license plates.

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//Featured cases

Unnamed University of Georgia Police IT employee

University of Georgia Police Department · Athens, Clarke, Georgia
Disciplined; suspended without pay for 20 business days, demoted, and investigative-database access revoked 20-business-day unpaid suspension and demotion; retained employment Automated License Plate ReaderOther Unauthorized / personal-interest searchespolicy violation

A periodic audit found that a civilian University of Georgia Police Department IT employee used the Flock ALPR database twice in 2025 without supervisor authorization. One search involved a hit-and-run in which a family member’s vehicle was struck; the other involved a theft at a local business. The incidents were off campus and had been reported to other law-enforcement agencies, but those agencies had not requested the employee’s assistance.

Latasha Moore

East Cleveland Police Department · East Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio
Indicted / Pending Unpaid administrative leave Prosecutors alleged Moore used law-enforcement camera/database access, including Flock, to search a license plate connected to a personal relationship for a non-law-enforcement purpose.Automated License Plate Reader Non-law-enforcement usePersonal relationshipRecords / computer misuse alleged

Prosecutors alleged Moore used law-enforcement camera/database access, including Flock, to search a license plate connected to a personal relationship for a non-law-enforcement purpose.

Frank McGrath

Kenosha County Sheriff's Office · Kenosha, Kenosha, Wisconsin
Criminally Charged / Pending Resigned OtherAutomated License Plate Reader Non-law-enforcement useRomantic partnerTracking

County investigators alleged McGrath used the sheriff's office Flock system to monitor another deputy with whom he had a romantic relationship while off duty.

Read the methodology

//Where cases are concentrated

State totals and county-level concentrations are shown separately so broad statewide counts are not mixed with local jurisdiction counts.

Top states
Georgia · 79 cases
Florida · 14 cases
Illinois · 14 cases
Texas · 13 cases
South Carolina · 10 cases
Ohio · 9 cases
Wisconsin · 9 cases
California · 8 cases
Top counties

//Recent timeline events

October 2, 2026
Chesterfield County Police Department
Charges updatedCoworker report followed by supervisory audit of police-system queriesPolice-system access revoked; administrative leave without payArrested / Charged
September 30, 2026
Lufkin Police Department
Charges updatedNo longer employedConvicted
Hall County Sheriff's Office
Charges updated

//Scope and methodology

This archive is currently focused on misuse of automated license plate surveillance.
Related surveillance technologies may appear in case metadata when they are documented in reporting or official records.