“I feel like Big Brother’s already watching,” said County Commissioner Cathy Townsend on Sept. 1.
These words, an allusion to George Orwell’s dystopian novel “1984,” preceded a sudden vote to remove Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) traffic cameras from county roads. Ongoing national outcry led to hasty rollbacks of their use among St. Lucie law enforcement agencies last week.
It began with the Port St. Lucie Police Department announcing a “pause” from using their ALPR camera network Aug. 31, pending review. Before the pause, the PSLPD used 126 of these cameras, according to Public Information Officer Brittany McNally.
The city will also remove seven cameras in accordance with the Florida Department of Transportation banning them from state roads – for the first time since 2023 – the same day. McNally added city police would not identify their location due to “safety and security considerations.”
Poor public sentiment, said McNally, led city police to downsize their use as “rapidly evolving circumstances surrounding” the cameras and their data gathering capabilities emerge. Additional restrictions include the shortening of their data retention period from 30 days to seven.
Most of these cameras are tied to Flock Safety and Axon, two brands known for service contracts with U.S. law enforcement agencies. Both brands, particularly Flock, sparked objections over their use of A.I. to build cases around audio/visual information recorded without consent.
Last month, the Port St. Lucie City Council (which first approved ALPR camera use in mid-2022) heard at least two rounds of complaints over their data collection methods and instances of their misuse among officers in other parts of the country.
These stories led to national outrage, including here. By Monday morning, one Change.org petition gathered 1,11 signatures among St. Lucie citizens calling for their removal since July 18.
In response, the Florida legislature rushed bills to remove these cameras from state roads. It happened years after they approved their placement there in mid-2023, which overruled prior FDOT bylaws that banned them.
The PSLPD’s A.I. camera network included 53 cameras made by Flock Safety and 73 made by Axon, according to McNally. Yearly subscription fees for the two services rose to “approximately $269,000” since they entered service in 2023.
By then, Port St. Lucie police bought 14 Flock Safety cameras at $2,500 each in addition to an “annual subscription fee of $35,000,” McNally said. It later grew to 53 cameras and “approximately $171,400,” or 63.7 percent of their A.I. camera subscriptions. Despite their greater numbers, Axon cameras wrung out “$98,000” per year.
These decisions won’t affect the police’s other technological services, including their “Drone as First Responder Program.” This runs “independently” from the struck-down A.I. traffic cameras, McNally said. “The recent guidance regarding ALPR technology does not change or apply to the (drone) program.”
The day after Port St. Lucie’s and FDOT’s announcements, the St. Lucie Board of County Commissioners voted 3-2 to pause the use and permitting of all ALPR cameras along county roads.
Commissioner James Clasby proposed their removal in a non-agenda item. In response, they agreed to limit their use before voting on their removal in their Sept. 15 meeting.
Before Clasby moved to ban the cameras, the board was to discuss an agreement to have the Sheriff’s Office buy related equipment. Their order floated the $4,927.02 purchase of 42 Dell computer monitors for these cameras, records show.
The cameras were included with Axon’s “AI Era” software. According to the Axon website, the software automatically catalogs cases with video across traffic and body-worn cameras stored in third-party databases.
Clasby, who has criticized the cameras since being elected a commissioner in 2025, gave a packet of camera permits to each board member. Some, according to County Attorney Katherine Barbieri, were drafted by Public Works, rather than police.
“There was no public process to put this in the right of way,” said Clasby. “Sheriff (Richard) Del Toro cannot regulate the company that put the cameras there and what they do with the information.”
He added his vote to remove the cameras “was not an allegation” of any “wrongdoing” the Sheriff’s Office and its deputies were liable for.
Commissioner Erin Lowry, before her “aye” vote, highlighted the state’s lax regulation of ALPR cameras. State records show police agencies could apply for ALPR cameras without a license on the sole condition they delete their data after 90 days.
Privacy issues raised by the law, signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in mid-2023, worried Lowry. “What’s concerning to me is that there’s no legislation in the state to (enforce) this,” she said. “The fact that DeSantis has made this loud and clear is kind of scary.”
Agreeing with Lowry and Clasby, Commissioner Larry Leet said the cameras violated “privacy” with the possibility of Axon and Flock “selling” personal data they gathered.
“We’re being tracked,” said Leet, “whether we get rid of the Flock cameras or not.”
“I think the constituents are going to line up and say, ‘get them out of here,’” at Tuesday’s meeting, added Leet. “I do see the reason for the hurriedness on this. (We) have DeSantis saying he’s uncomfortable with it; what does he know that we don’t know?”
The Fort Pierce Police Department, Leet said, has offered no strategy on the cameras in their jurisdiction. “I don’t know where Fort Pierce is at; I never heard too much (about) Flock cameras there.”
Despite Townsend’s trepidation, she voted “no” to Clasby’s motion. She recommended they keep the cameras pending further talks with Del Toro, Port St. Lucie Police Chief Leo Niemczyk and Fort Pierce Police Chief David Smith.
Her argument brought up the Aug. 20 capture of a suspect in West Virginia wanted for a Vero Beach murder and how the existing, “more aggressive” coverage of body and car police cameras – along with home security systems, like Ring-brand doorbells – made privacy concerns redundant.
“It could be a 5-0 vote,” Townsend said, “but I would like to see this put off at least until the next meeting.” She added: “There’s a process, but I would like to follow the process.”
Commission Chair Jamie Lee Fowler, before voting “nay,” argued similarly to Townsend.
“It’s nothing new,” Fowler said. “I do agree that the duplication and number out there is alarming.” She found the “backend” of data collection and its implications for St. Lucie citizens “extremely scary.”
“It’s the unknown of accessing this (data),” said Fowler. “To me, that’s a legitimate concern.”
The county Sheriff’s Office and Fort Pierce Police Department did not provide comment by press time.