MONROE, Ohio — Monroe City Council voted Tuesday to shut down its Flock Safety automatic license plate reader system, joining a growing number of tri-state communities cutting ties with the technology amid a broader debate over privacy and public safety.
The vote came after residents lined up at the podium — veterans, parents and neighbors — to weigh in on whether the cameras make communities safer or erode civil liberties.
WATCH: Monroe City Council votes to shut down Flock Safety camera system amid privacy concerns
Deborah Ridemore, who said she spent two decades in military service, urged the council to act.
"I spent two decades serving to defend the constitutional rights of our citizens… Tonight, I'm here because I'm really sick and tired of seeing those protections eroded by a digital dragnet we never consented to," Ridemore said.
Critics of the system argued the cameras collect far more than license plate data.
"It's not even a license plate reader. It's a machine learning camera. It can look at your car's color, its dents, its bumper stickers," Austin D said.
Supporters warned that removing the cameras could have serious consequences for public safety.
"With public safety being by far the number one… I believe that removing Flock cameras will significantly impact public safety," William Layman said.
Flock Safety, the company behind the cameras, said the technology can work responsibly with proper oversight and pointed to other cities that returned to the program after adding safeguards.
"Most people don't believe community safety needs to come at the expense of community values. That there is a balance, and that people believe in this technology, but they believe in it with guardrails and transparency," Trevor Chandler, Flock Safety public affairs, said.
At the state level, Ohio lawmakers have introduced a number of legislative proposals to restrict, pause or entirely ban Flock Safety cameras. So far, the only bipartisan effort is House Bill 1009, which would punish individual law enforcement officers who misuse the system.
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