Should Lexington use Flock cameras to catch criminals? Mayoral candidates weigh in

Three candidates vying for Lexington’s top job have different views on the use of newly deployed license plate reader cameras on Lexington streets.

“I believe there is a lack of transparency,” said Adrian Wallace, who runs a development company and is one of three candidates running in the May 17 primary for mayor. “We need to know where they are.”

But current Mayor Linda Gorton said the nine license plate reader cameras by Flock Safety have already helped police solve crimes including arresting people wanted for assault, animal cruelty and has helped police find stolen vehicles. The city will get 25 cameras under a pilot project. Gorton has also included money in her proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 for an additional 75 cameras.

Police have not released the location of those cameras, citing security reasons. But some groups including the American Civil Liberties Union have raised concerns those cameras will be disproportionately placed in minority neighborhoods.

Gorton said the cameras are placed in areas where there are violent crime. Flock Safety determines those areas based on crime statistics. The cameras take still photos of license plates and feed them into a database that can check that license plate to determine if it was used in connection with a crime. The cameras are used to collect evidence and are not used for surveillance, Gorton said.

“I’ve had people call me and say, ‘I want it in my neighborhood,’” Gorton said at a mayoral forum Tuesday at the Lyric Theatre. The forum focused on racial justice and law enforcement. The forum was sponsored by the Lexington-Fayette Branch of the NAACP, the Alpha Beta Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Building Cultural Bridges, the Central Kentucky Chapter of Kentuckians for the Commonwealth, and the Central Kentucky Council for Peace & Justice.

David Kloiber, a first-term Lexington-Fayette Urban County Councilman and mayoral candidate, said he has not seen evidence Flock cameras reduce overall crime or improve solve rates. Kloiber also said he was concerned the cameras were going to be placed in neighborhoods that have traditionally been over-policed.

Gorton countered it was not debatable that the cameras help police solve crimes.

There have been lawsuits in various states challenging the use of license plate readers, most recently in a case in Florida.

When asked if there needs to be more citizen oversight of police, Gorton said through the city’s collective bargaining agreement with the Fraternal Order of Police Bluegrass Lodge 4, they were able to add two civilians to an internal police disciplinary board.

Gorton said to get a citizen oversight board for Lexington would take a change in state law. Gorton said they approached state leaders in Frankfort about changing the law so Lexington can have a citizen oversight board but state officials told city officials getting such a bill through the Republican-controlled General Assembly was not possible.

“Sometimes it takes years of work,” Gorton said.

Sen. Reggie Thomas, D-Lexington, tried unsuccessfully to get a bill passed in 2021 that would have allowed Lexington to set up a separate civilian oversight board for police. Thomas said at the time he was asked to do so by community activists, not Lexington city officials. The bill died in the 2021 legislative session.

Kloiber said he supports an external oversight board. “More transparency never hurt anyone,” Kloiber said.

Wallace said Gorton is just now appointing the two civilians to the internal police disciplinary board.

“We are two years in and we are just now getting (those appointments),” Wallace said. Wallace said he asked if there was a way to set up a citizen oversight board through a governor’s executive order but was told that would likely be challenged by Attorney General Daniel Cameron.

Civilian appointments to the internal police disciplinary board had to be approved by the Fraternal Order of Police. That contract was approved in October.

Gorton told the crowd Tuesday that her three and a half years in office has seen a global pandemic and a nationwide reckoning on racial justice but she has met those challenges head on. The city has worked hard to reduce evictions throughout the pandemic, she said. The economy is rebounding. Gun violence is down 50% compared to the same time period in 2021, Gorton said.

“Fighting for Lexington is something that I have done for 20 years,” Gorton said. Gorton, a registered nurse, served on the Lexington council for 16 years prior to being elected mayor in 2018.

Kloiber, who runs his family’s foundation, argued it was taking too long and not enough has been done to address long-simmering problems in Lexington. Lexington is a great place to live but it could be even better, he said.

“I feel like I could give Lexington some bright, new leadership,” Kloiber said.

Wallace has served as a volunteer police chaplain and has also been an officer with the local and state NAACP. Wallace said he’s concerned that police are severely understaffed and the department isn’t getting enough applicants to fill open positions. Lexington Police Chief Lawrence Weathers said Tuesday his office is down 94 officers.

“I’m a bridge builder,” Wallace, a military veteran, said. “I’ve served my country and I would like to continue serving as your mayor.”

This story was originally published April 27, 2022 at 12:53 PM.

Beth Musgrave

Lexington Herald-Leader

Beth Musgrave has covered government and politics for the Herald-Leader for more than a decade. A graduate of Northwestern University, she has worked as a reporter in Kentucky, Indiana, Mississippi, Illinois and Washington D.C. Support my work with a digital subscription