ATLANTA, GA — A wave of arrests tied to alleged misuse of Flock Safety license plate reader data is drawing new scrutiny in Georgia, especially around Atlanta. The latest case came from DeKalb County, where a sheriff’s office sergeant was fired, arrested and charged after officials said he improperly used the system.
The case adds to a growing list of Georgia law enforcement officers accused of looking up plate data for reasons that had nothing to do with official police work. Privacy advocates say the pattern shows how quickly surveillance tools can be abused when access is broad and oversight is limited.
DeKalb County case adds to a growing list across Georgia
According to the report, the DeKalb County sergeant faces both a misdemeanor charge tied to misuse of Flock technology and a felony charge for violating the oath of a public officer. Officials did not say which records were accessed or why, but the arrest marked the 17th similar case reported across the state at that point.
Other arrests have involved officers in Albany, Richmond County, Fayetteville, Cherokee County and Greene County. On Wednesday, another arrest followed in Conyers, where a supervisor in the police department’s Real-Time Crime Center was accused of using the system more than 30 times to search for a domestic partner’s vehicle…