MADISON HEIGHTS, Mich. (WXYZ) — There's another Flock camera controversy in metro Detroit, this time between a cannabis dispensary and the City of Madison Heights.
Watch Mike Duffy's report below
The dispensary took a stand against a Flock camera monitoring its parking lot and put up a big sign blocking the camera that read “No Flock Zone."
They say the city threatened them with sanctions if they didn’t take it down, and I went out there Tuesday to check it all out for myself.
The Flock camera is still up at the JARS Cannabis dispensary in Madison heights.
Its lens is pointed directly at the parking lot, and there is no longer a sign blocking the camera’s view.
But a week prior, JARS Cannabis had taken a stand. According to their own statement: “We share our community’s concern about increased surveillance, which is why we placed the No Flock Zone sign in front of the camera to block its ability to record.
It goes on to say in part, “After we installed our No Flock Zone sign, the city issued a demand letter warning of sanctions if we did not remove it within 48 hours. Since receiving the letter, we have been in contact with city representatives and are working toward a resolution.”
I tried to talk someone at the dispensary, but was told to refer to their Instagram statement.
The thing is, the dispensary was only allowed into Madison Heights after the company sued and the city settled. As part of the settlement agreement, the owner of the dispensary agreed put a Flock camera at the entrance of the parking lot and allow Madison Heights Police unhindered live access.
I reached out to multiple representatives with the city but have not heard back.
People who live nearby weighed in.
"I think that we are giving up too much for our safety. We’re relinquishing too much of our privacy for the sake of safety. For me, it’s not worth it," Samantha Jackson said.
"I think the police should be able to monitor, that’s fine. But the Flock feels really invasive," Marissa Cannon added.
Michigan State Sen. Jim Runestad introduced Senate Bill 1131 to limit the use and scope of data from traffic cameras.
“I’ve watched programs where police officers have been tracking primarily ex-girlfriends. They will text them and say, ‘I know every date you’ve gone, everywhere you go.’ And they were using the Flock cameras. So there’s got to be some guardrails," Runestad said. “In Michigan it is the wild, wild west. They can do whatever they want to do. There’s no prohibition.
“There’s I believe a legitimate potential law enforcement use that could really be impactful. But it has to be real-time, there has to be an investigation of a crime, you can’t just willy nilly grab 20 billion bits of data which is happening nationally, and just keep that stuff indefinitely," he added.
Flock issued a statement reading in part, “Flock is strongly in favor of common-sense regulation that preserves the ability of law enforcement to use these highly effective technologies, while requiring the sorts of safeguards and accountability mechanisms communities expect. We stand ready to be a resource to the legislature as they consider these important issues.”
