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Santa Barbara is giving controversial Flock license-plate cameras the boot — but the fight over police surveillance is far from over.
The city’s contract with Flock Safety expired Aug. 23 after residents blasted the automated license plate reader technology over privacy concerns, including fears that data could be shared with federal immigration authorities.
At a City Council meeting Tuesday, members stopped short of signing a deal with another surveillance company and instead ordered a review of the city’s policy governing automated license plate readers, or ALPRs.
For now, Santa Barbara will have no automated license plate cameras operating.
The coastal city had been using 12 Flock cameras since late 2023. Police Chief Kelly Gordon said the technology helped cops locate stolen cars, identify suspect vehicles and investigate serious crimes.
Gordon said the cameras were used to identify suspects in a serial jewelry store robbery, a stabbing and attempted homicide and an assault in 2025. Solved violent crime cases increased 11% since the cameras were introduced, while solved hit-and-run cases rose 9%, she said.
But residents said the potential privacy risks weren’t worth it.
Eric Boser told the council that “we’ve seen across the country” how the technology can be “abused, misused, and target members of our community.”
Britney Sarate, whose father is a 30-year law enforcement veteran, said there’s “case after case” of ALPR technology being used to “stalk women.”
She also accused Verkada, the company Santa Barbara had considered as a Flock replacement, of being “specifically accused of using this technology to stalk and harass women.”
Verkada’s system differs from Flock in that the cameras would be city-owned and controlled, with no public or multi-agency search access.
Gordon recommended the city consider Verkada, saying it could preserve the investigative benefits of ALPRs while keeping data under the control of a single organization.
She also stressed that Flock cameras can identify license plates but cannot perform facial recognition.
In fact, one of Santa Barbara’s Flock cameras was recently stolen — and police couldn’t identify the suspect because the camera doesn’t capture faces.
Councilwoman Kristen Sneddon said the concerns go beyond the local police department.
“This is not about our local police,” Sneddon said. “This is about the ability of data to be breached, the ability for data to be used in very targeted nefarious ways. It’s about federal overreach, it’s about regional overreach. And it’s about no matter how much we think we have control of that data, I just don’t think we do.”
Councilmember Meagan Harmon similarly said, “Privacy concerns are not going away, they continue to grow,” adding, “And it’s important that we continue to have iterative conversations about our use of technology in Santa Barbara.”
Councilman Mike Jordan defended the cameras, saying his own family had benefited from the technology.
“If somebody’s kid or grandkid was picked up and an ALPR remedied that crime with the safe return of the kid, I think if I was against ALPR, I would come to Jesus pretty quick, right then and there,” Jordan said.
The council did not formally vote Tuesday. Members are expected to direct the city administrator not to sign a Verkada contract and to review the ALPR policy, with that process likely coming in early 2027.
Santa Barbara joins a growing list of California cities — including Los Angeles, El Cerrito and Mountain View — that have suspended or ended use of license-plate cameras amid an intensifying debate over privacy and public safety.
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