One of America’s largest tribes turns to Flock cameras to fight crime

Straight Arrow / By

This post was originally published on this site.

The Navajo Nation law enforcement is significantly understaffed. Leaders are turning to a highly controversial technology in hopes of filling the gaps across its vast tribal territory. 

The Nation partnered with Flock, a license plate surveillance program, last week to bring license plate readers to 27,000 square miles of tribal land. 

Americans across the country have expressed privacy concerns connected to the technology, but the nation’s leaders say in this case, it could help local law enforcement patrol an understaffed area.

The understaffing problem

The Navajo Department of Criminal Investigation and the Navajo Nation Police Department currently patrol the thousands of acres across Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. However, with current law enforcement staffing, there’s only about one officer per 1,000 residents.  

That ratio has sometimes led to emergency response times upwards of an hour, leaving residents without immediate assistance in a time of need. 

Now, Flock says it’s stepping in to help fill those gaps. 

“The Navajo Nation faces some of the most difficult public safety challenges in the country, and we’re proud to stand with the NDCI and NNPD to help close that gap,” Flock wrote in a news release. 

A Navajo Criminal Investigator said the cameras will help with drug smuggling, child abduction, missing person and homicide investigations. 

“Flock will assist us by being our eyes in the community and help get dangerous subjects in custody as we navigate the shortage of manpower on the reservation,” the investigator said in a news release. “It is simply an added tool for us.”

The tool comes at a time when indigenous communities face a public safety crisis. According to the U.S. Department of the Interior Indian Affairs, Native American women face a crisis of violence, with murder rates on some reservation lands reaching up to 10 times the national average.

Privacy concerns

Despite understaffed law enforcement, residents are still concerned. One Navajo citizen said the prospect of Flock cameras on tribal land was “terrifying” and called it an invasion of privacy. 

Residents in surrounding areas, like Gallup, New Mexico, have been vocal about their opposition to Flock cameras. They’ve pointed out that license plate information is subject to New Mexico’s public record laws, so the system could expose sensitive location data to domestic violence perpetrators.

Others have called the cameras a Fourth Amendment violation, arguing that automated license plate readers amount to warrantless surveillance. The issue here is that constitutional rights don’t largely extend to tribal lands. 

Online, a former tribal resident said the news is “both understandable and a huge bummer.”

Others questioned whether tribal sovereignty comes into play. Specifically, who will own the data? Flock, or tribal police departments? 

Flock did not respond to Straight Arrow’s inquiry on the matter. However, in its news release, Flock said, “To enhance community trust, Flock, the NDCI, and NNPD will launch a public transparency portal, giving even further visibility into how the system is used.”

Flock nationwide

Flock is arriving on native land as many cities across the U.S. actually start to turn away from the technology. 

Last month, the Los Angeles Police Department canceled its Flock contract after the cameras falsely flagged vehicles as stolen. 

Cities in Texas, Illinois, Wisconsin and Michigan have also severed ties with the company. Meanwhile, other cities are still using the technology, and some are even pushing for it. 

Most recently, Seattle faced pressure to increase automated security following a deadly shooting at a food festival.

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