Marshall County Commissioners spent Tuesday evening hearing both sides of the debate over the county’s six Flock cameras before ultimately voting to “bag and tag” them while giving commissioners and incoming officials time to come up with a more comprehensive plan.
The special meeting included presentations from Sheriff Matthew Hassel, Prosecutor Nelson Chipman, incoming Sheriff Les McFarland, unopposed candidate for prosecutor Joe Morris and Noah Bazis with the Institute for Justice. Residents were also given time to speak before commissioners discussed what to do next.
Much of the meeting came down to the same question: Can the county keep Flock as a useful law enforcement tool while putting enough safeguards in place to address privacy concerns?
Hassel supported continuing to use the cameras, but said stronger policies should be part of that. He said Flock has helped law enforcement develop leads, find missing children and locate stolen vehicles.
“I support continuing to use Flock, and I also support putting strong, clear policies in place to make sure it’s used responsibly,” Hassel said.
Bazis raised the other side of the issue, focusing on Fourth Amendment concerns and how much information can be collected through ALPR systems.
“Ask ourselves if the benefit justifies the surveillance,” Bazis said.
Nineteen residents spoke during public comment, and the divide in the room was clear. Some supported keeping Flock as another tool for law enforcement, particularly when dealing with missing children, stolen vehicles and serious crimes. Several of those supporters still called for tighter rules, regular audits and consequences if the system is misused.
Others wanted the cameras removed altogether, raising concerns about government surveillance, how much information the system can collect, who outside Marshall County may be able to access the data and whether local policies would actually be enough to keep that information under local control.
Two written letters supporting Flock were also received.
After the public portion of the meeting ended, commissioners turned to what should happen with the six county cameras.
Commissioner Adam Faulstich made a motion to “bag and tag” the cameras, leave the current contract in place and give the incoming sheriff and prosecutor time to put additional controls in place. Commissioner Jesse Bohannon seconded the motion, which passed 2-1.
A second motion requires the cameras to remain covered until the board votes again. That motion also passed 2-1.
The decision only applies to the six county cameras. It does not affect cameras operated by Plymouth or Bremen.
County Attorney Sean Surrisi advised commissioners not to immediately cover the cameras and instead first meet with Flock to discuss how to carry out the decision legally.
For now, the contract stays in place, the six county cameras will be covered and the issue will come back before commissioners before they can be used again. It is unclear when the cameras will be covered.