Consent of the watched: Puyallup’s new surveillance state | Opinion
The science of policing has greatly evolved since I began my 23 years in law enforcement (I retired from the Puyallup Police Department in 2022). Adopting a tool is one thing, governing with it is an entirely different challenge.
Novel technologies, like automated license plate readers, may serve a real public safety purpose, but potential benefits must be weighed judiciously and with skepticism. The public must remain the top authority on whether instruments of their surveillance should be adopted, and should be made aware of all risks and benefits of such proposals.
That’s the problem in Puyallup. This technology is new and unexplored, and the public has had no oversight on its approval or execution.
When the City Council approved its Flock contract late in 2023, it did so through a consent agenda, meaning no on-the-record debate or opportunities for public comment. It endured the same procedural weight as approving office supplies. The two-year, $246,550 contract they passed has now expired, and the cameras still run. Mayor Ned Witting told the Tribune plainly last April, “It has expired, but we’re still using it.” The Tribune also reported that the city is paying a fee for Flock services of $3,306/monthly, recurring indefinitely.
The stakes are not just financial, as Flock cameras scan data on roughly 670,000 vehicles in Puyallup every month. Our police chief, Scott Engle, previously confirmed that Miami-Dade PD searched Puyallup’s Flock data citing “immigration” as the reason, through a national lookup program that Puyallup PD has since cut off. University of Washington researchers documented that Puyallup PD ran Flock searches for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, an agency that reportedly uses Flock data-targeting for immigration enforcement.
Flock’s record should give us pause. Flock now faces a class-action lawsuit over unauthorized data sharing. The Electronic Frontier Foundation’s analysis of 12 million searches documented the system’s use in tracking peaceful protesters and surveilling women seeking reproductive healthcare. An Illinois audit found Flock had secretly enabled federal border enforcement access through a program its own leadership claimed to be unaware of. We would be fools to believe we are exempt from Flock’s flagrant violations of American’s personal privacy and civil liberties.
Olympia has acted because of overreaches like these. The Driver’s Privacy Act became law in March, prohibiting ALPR use for immigration enforcement and requiring cameras be relocated from sensitive sites, like schools and churches. Engle has only publicly acknowledged three of the city’s 39 cameras may currently violate state law, and the city also hasn’t verified compliance registration mandated by the attorney general with a deadline of this September.
Municipalities are proactively responding, too. Olympia, Everett, Redmond and Lynnwood have deactivated their cameras pending review. Eatonville terminated its Flock contract outright, and over 80 other cities nationwide have done the same. Our council hasn’t considered either.
Residents deserve clarity, on three points. One, to what extent is our resident’s data being shared with the federal government and other agencies? Two, what steps is the city taking to assess their contracts and comply with state regulations? Three, when will Puyallup residents finally get a say in any of this?
We need answers.
Jeff Bennett is a lifelong citizen of Puyallup who retired from the Puyallup Police Department in 2022. He and his wife live downtown with their two dogs.