Roanoke Police Chief Scott Booth is defending the department’s use of Flock license plate reading cameras, detailing oversight measures designed to prevent misuse as residents and city council members push back on the surveillance technology. The scrutiny follows a separate, troubled rollout of Flock gunshot detectors that ended with the city pulling all of the devices.
This reporting is based on a single source, WDBJ, and has not yet been independently corroborated.
Gunshot Detector Program Collapses Before It Starts
Roanoke City Council had approved the installation of 75 Flock gunshot detectors earlier this year. The devices are built to pick up specific sounds — including gunshots and cries for help — to help officers identify and respond to incidents more quickly. By last month, 41 had been placed across the city.
Problems surfaced almost immediately. Initial reports flagged 16 devices as improperly installed due to a data entry error. That figure soon climbed to 30. Rather than attempt corrections on a piecemeal basis, the city chose to scrap the program entirely and remove every device that had been put in place…