Flock Safety Cameras In Twinsburg – What Residents Should Know

Flock Safety Cameras in Twinsburg: Questions and Answers From Police Chief Mason

At our recent Twinsburg City Council meeting, Police Chief Mason and members of the Twinsburg Police Department gave an extensive presentation regarding the city’s use of Flock Safety cameras.

There has been significant discussion nationally about automated license plate readers (ALPRs), including questions about privacy, data retention, information sharing and the ability of law enforcement agencies to track vehicles.

Residents had also raised a number of questions about Twinsburg’s use of the system. Those questions were provided to the administration in advance, and Chief Mason addressed them during the meeting with assistance from members of his department.

I’ve taken that portion of the meeting and organized it below into a more readable question-and-answer format. The answers have been edited for clarity and brevity, but are based on what was presented publicly at the Council meeting.

If you would like to watch and listen to the meeting in its entirety it can be found here: City of Twinsburg Caucus Meeting – August 25, 2026. The presentation starts around the 26 minute mark.

What is Flock Safety and how does Twinsburg use it?

Twinsburg uses Flock’s automated license plate reader system as both an alert system and an investigative tool.

The cameras can alert police when a vehicle associated with certain law-enforcement information enters the city. Examples discussed during the presentation included stolen vehicles, warrants, protection orders and other law-enforcement alerts.

The department can also search historical Flock information as part of an investigation—for example, when detectives have a description of a suspect vehicle involved in a crime.

Chief Mason described Flock as a “tremendous tool” that the department has used in numerous investigations.

Did Twinsburg compare Flock with competing systems?

When Twinsburg initially began using Flock several years ago, money had already been budgeted for cameras. According to Chief Mason, Flock was gaining national adoption at the time and the department researched the system and determined that its capabilities fit the city’s needs.

Other companies have since entered the automated license plate reader market, but the department has not conducted a more recent comparison with those competitors.

One of Flock’s primary advantages, according to the Chief, is the size of its network. Flock’s presence in other communities allows law enforcement agencies to cooperate and potentially develop investigative leads beyond their own jurisdiction.

Will Twinsburg create a Flock transparency page?

Yes.

The department recently became aware of a transparency portal offered by Flock that individual law enforcement agencies can customize for their communities.

Chief Mason said the department intends to implement one.

The department is also working with the city’s Law Director to determine exactly what information can legally be made available through that portal.

Will Twinsburg’s Flock policy be made public?

The department’s intention is to publish its policy as part of its transparency efforts.

Twinsburg has an existing policy governing automated license plate reader use. According to the department, that policy addresses who may use the system and the circumstances under which it can be used.

What uses of Flock are prohibited?

According to Chief Mason, any use that is not for a legitimate law-enforcement purpose is prohibited.

Searches must be connected to a law-enforcement purpose and documented appropriately. The department discussed requiring information such as a case number when conducting searches.

An example of improper use would be an officer repeatedly searching the license plate of an ex-spouse, boyfriend, girlfriend or other person simply to determine whether that individual had been in the community.

That would not constitute a legitimate law-enforcement purpose.

Does the department audit officers’ use of Flock?

Yes.

Lieutenant Waltz explained that the department audits use of Flock and other sensitive law-enforcement databases to ensure they are being used properly.

He said he conducts Flock audits quarterly and sometimes more frequently.

Flock has also announced additional safeguards intended to identify potentially suspicious searches, such as repeated searches of the same vehicle, so they can be reviewed for a legitimate law-enforcement purpose.

Does Flock contain personal information about drivers?

According to the police department, Twinsburg’s Flock cameras do not identify the driver or occupants of a vehicle.

The system captures an image of the vehicle and its license plate. It does not use the camera to identify the person driving the vehicle.

The department emphasized during the presentation that the cameras cannot see who is inside the vehicle.

Are Flock images and license plate data public records?

According to the city’s Law Director, automated license plate reader images and data are not public records under Ohio law.

That is one reason the Law Department plans to review the city’s proposed transparency portal before it goes live—to ensure the city does not inadvertently publish information that is not subject to public disclosure.

What cameras does Twinsburg have?

Twinsburg has 14 cameras associated with the program.

Twelve are automated license plate readers.

The city also has two fixed cameras that are not ALPR cameras. Those are located near State Route 91 in the area of the Post Office and State Route 82 near Sheetz.

Those two cameras can be used by officers to view conditions at those locations—for example, during an accident, hit-skip, traffic problem or criminal incident.

According to Chief Mason, those two cameras do not collect license plate data in the manner the ALPR cameras do.

Where are the 12 license plate readers located?

The department said the cameras are primarily positioned to monitor vehicles entering the city.

Locations identified during the meeting included:

State Route 82 eastbound at Chamberlain; State Route 91 southbound at I-480; State Route 91 northbound at Old Mill; State Route 91 northbound at State Route 82; State Route 82 eastbound at I-480; Ravenna northbound at State Route 82; Ravenna southbound at Shepard; Chamberlain northbound at State Route 82; Glenwood at Liberty; State Route 91 southbound at Meadowood; State Route 91 northbound at I-480; and State Route 82 westbound near I-480.

The department characterized the placement as essentially covering major entrances into Twinsburg.

Are there Flock cameras in Twinsburg that aren’t owned by the city?

Yes.

Flock cameras can also be purchased and operated by private businesses and other organizations.

During the presentation, police discussed Flock cameras located at FedEx. FedEx has granted the department access to those cameras, and one of those cameras recently alerted Twinsburg officers to a stolen vehicle.

Other neighboring communities and organizations also use Flock.

Which neighboring communities use Flock?

According to the department, several communities surrounding Twinsburg use Flock, including Solon, Reminderville, Aurora and Oakwood.

Hudson was identified during the presentation as a neighboring community that does not currently have the system.

This regional network is one of the features the department considers valuable.

Who owns the information collected by Twinsburg’s cameras?

According to the department, each individual agency owns the data collected by its cameras.

Agencies can agree to share access with other agencies.

The department said the majority of what Twinsburg shares with other agencies involves searches and alerts.

Can Flock track a person around Twinsburg?

Chief Mason emphasized that the city’s Flock cameras are not continuously following vehicles or people around town.

For example, if a vehicle triggers a camera while entering Twinsburg from Oakwood, police may know that the vehicle entered the city at that location.

The system does not then tell police that the vehicle drove to the high school, library, Giant Eagle or another location within Twinsburg.

However, if that vehicle later passes another Flock camera in a participating neighboring jurisdiction, such as Reminderville or Aurora, another camera observation may be available through the network.

How long is Flock information retained?

At the time of the presentation, the department said Flock’s standard retention period had been 30 days.

Flock has announced that its standard retention period will be reduced to seven days.

The department indicated that information associated with an investigation can be retained longer when necessary.

Can Twinsburg configure the cameras to collect only the license plate and nothing else about the vehicle?

No, according to the department.

The image can also provide identifying characteristics of the vehicle, such as its make, model, color, roof rack, bumper stickers or other visible characteristics.

Chief Mason said he would not want to eliminate that capability even if it were possible because those characteristics can be extremely valuable during an investigation when police don’t have a readable license plate.

The department later provided a significant example of exactly how that capability has been used.

What happens when Flock detects a wanted or suspect vehicle?

Flock can generate an alert when a vehicle associated with law-enforcement information passes one of the cameras.

Importantly, officers do not simply act upon the Flock alert.

Dispatch first verifies the information through law-enforcement databases before sending officers to the vehicle.

One example discussed involved a warrant. If a Flock alert is associated with a warrant for a woman but an officer subsequently sees that the vehicle is being driven by a man, the department explained that officers would not simply stop the driver based upon the alert.

The information is verified and evaluated before police action is taken.

Who can add a vehicle to Twinsburg’s Flock “hot list”?

Not every police officer or dispatcher can add a vehicle.

According to the department, patrol officers and dispatchers may receive alerts, but only supervisors and command personnel—including sergeants, lieutenants and the Chief—can add vehicles to the department’s internal hot lists.

There must also be a legitimate reason for doing so.

One example involved a person repeatedly returning to the community in connection with a domestic violence/protection-order situation. By adding the appropriate vehicle to a hot list, officers could be alerted if it returned to the city.

How does Flock help detectives solve crimes?

The department provided a detailed example involving an armed carjacking at the Twinsburg Sheetz in March 2025.

A 29-year-old Amazon employee stopped at Sheetz early in the morning during his lunch break. As he returned to his vehicle, another vehicle boxed him in and an armed suspect demanded his keys.

Police had surveillance video but could not read the temporary license plate on the suspects’ vehicle.

They did, however, have several characteristics to work with: a black four-door Chrysler 200, a temporary tag, a black license plate frame and a white sticker on the vehicle.

Detectives searched those characteristics through the Flock network.

They found a matching vehicle that had passed a Flock camera in Euclid the previous day. That provided investigators with a license plate and eventually an address in Cleveland.

Within hours, Twinsburg detectives were in Cleveland and located the vehicle.

The investigation ultimately resulted in suspects being taken into custody. Officers recovered stolen handguns, and during the pursuit another suspect discarded a backpack containing a loaded AK-47-style rifle.

According to the department, the suspects were identified and in custody within approximately eight hours.

The primary suspect was later sentenced to eight years in federal prison.

Detectives emphasized that Flock did not solve the crime by itself. Rather, it provided an investigative lead that allowed traditional police work to continue.

Can detectives simply search through vehicles to see what they find?

The detective who discussed the carjacking investigation specifically addressed this concern.

He said investigators begin with a crime and then search for specific vehicles during specific time periods based upon information such as witness statements or surveillance video.

“It’s not a fishing expedition,” he told Council.

The Flock search provides a potential investigative direction, after which detectives must continue building the case through traditional investigative methods.

Does Twinsburg help other police departments using its Flock system?

Yes.

Departments that do not have Flock sometimes contact Twinsburg during active criminal investigations.

For example, another department might have surveillance footage showing a red Ford Focus involved in a crime and ask Twinsburg whether a matching vehicle appeared on its cameras during a particular date and time.

Chief Mason described this as part of the normal cooperation that occurs between law enforcement agencies.

Twinsburg does not charge neighboring departments for those searches. Other departments provide Twinsburg assistance and access to specialized resources when needed as well.

Has Flock been used for anything besides criminal suspects and stolen cars?

Yes.

One of the most interesting portions of the presentation involved missing and endangered people.

The department said Flock has helped officers locate people with dementia who became lost while driving, as well as missing persons and other endangered individuals.

One recent example involved a Twinsburg resident who left to visit friends in the Collinwood area and did not arrive.

Police used several investigative tools, including cell phone information, communication with other agencies and Flock observations, to narrow down his location.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol eventually located the man, and Twinsburg police were able to bring him home to his wife.

The department also referenced a separate situation in which Flock helped locate a missing family member around Christmas.

Does Twinsburg use Flock to issue speeding tickets?

No.

The department said the Flock system is not being used for speeding enforcement or automated speeding tickets.

Does Twinsburg use Flock for immigration enforcement or ICE?

A Council member specifically asked whether Twinsburg was using Flock in connection with ICE.

The department’s answer was no.

Police said, “We don’t use it for that.”

Why doesn’t Twinsburg charge other departments to use its Flock resources?

Chief Mason explained that cooperation among police departments is reciprocal.

Twinsburg may perform a Flock search for another department, while another agency might provide Twinsburg access to equipment or expertise it doesn’t possess.

Examples given during the meeting included specialized technology for accessing a suspect’s phone pursuant to a warrant and Macedonia providing a mobile fingerprint scanner after a recent pursuit when suspects refused to identify themselves.

The department characterized that cooperation as agencies helping one another rather than charging each other for individual services.

What happens if Council does not approve continued participation in Flock?

Chief Mason strongly recommended continuing the program.

He said the department has used Flock in numerous major investigations and believes eliminating it would remove a tool that benefits public safety.

His position was that the technology itself is not the problem when it is governed by appropriate policies, access controls and auditing.

The department acknowledged that misuse is possible—the same reason policies and audits exist—but maintained that Twinsburg has safeguards intended to prevent and detect improper use.

What comes next?

Council is considering legislation affirming the city’s continued participation in its Flock Safety agreement.

Separately, the Police Department has said it intends to create a public Flock transparency portal and make its ALPR policy available to residents.

The presentation made clear that Flock has become an important investigative tool for the Twinsburg Police Department. It also addressed many of the questions residents have raised regarding what the cameras see, how long information is retained, who can access the system, how searches are audited and how information can be shared with other agencies.

As this legislation moves through Council, I believe residents should have access to the same information Council received so they can understand both the capabilities of the technology and the safeguards surrounding its use.