While the City of Santa Cruz has canceled its contract with Flock Safety, Capitola and Watsonville expect to keep working with the company.
Flock Safety cameras
Lookout’s news and Community Voices opinion coverage of Flock Safety automated license plate readers in Santa Cruz County.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
What to know about Flock Safety’s automated license plate readers across Santa Cruz County
Here’s Lookout’s reporting so far on Santa Cruz’s Flock exit and why Scotts Valley and the county sheriff’s office have held off on automated license plate readers.
Posted inLatest News
City council votes to end Santa Cruz’s contract with Flock Safety
The Santa Cruz City Council voted 6-1 to end the city’s contract with Flock Safety at its Tuesday meeting following data breaches, community pushback, and a recommendation from three councilmembers that the city pull out of the contract.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Mass surveillance is not public safety – Santa Cruz must cancel its Flock contract
Mass surveillance cameras operated by the private company Flock Safety are spreading across Santa Cruz County, putting residents’ privacy, safety and constitutional rights at risk, warns a group of activists working to get the cameras removed.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Santa Cruz City Council to consider ending Flock Safety contract at Tuesday meeting
The Santa Cruz City Council will weigh pulling out of its contract with Flock Safety at its Tuesday meeting after several recent data breaches and sustained community pushback about the use of the company’s automatic license plate readers.
Posted inLatest News
Police arrest two suspects in October Beach Flats Park shooting
The Santa Cruz Police Department has arrested two suspects in connection with an October shooting near Beach Flats Park in Santa Cruz.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
Anti-Flock group finds that state agencies accessed SCPD camera data thousands of times on feds’ behalf since mid-2024
Numerous California law enforcement agencies searched the Santa Cruz Police Department’s Flock camera data thousands of times in the past 18 months on behalf of federal immigration agencies, according to data compiled by grassroots coalition Get The Flock Out.
Posted inLatest News
Georgia police chief, arrested for using Flock cameras for stalking and harassment, searched Capitola data earlier this year
Data compiled by countywide grassroots coalition Get The Flock Out shows that a former Georgia police chief searched Capitola data in early 2025. Capitola Police Chief Sarah Ryan said she was not aware of these searches, but given the recent issues with Flock Safety is not surprised.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
City of Santa Cruz delays Flock camera discussion until January
The Santa Cruz City Council has pushed off plans to revisit its contract with Flock Safety for automated license plate readers until January, rather than its originally planned date of Dec. 9.
Posted inPolitics & Policy
In the Public Interest: Santa Cruz City Council reopens its debate over license plate readers
A look at what’s happening in Santa Cruz County politics & policy, from Flock Safety cameras in the city of Santa Cruz to Mid-County power outages and a “peace deal” on the passenger rail and trail.