Fridley residents packed Monday night's City Council meeting as they expressed concerns about access to Flock Safety camera data.
Many referenced a Minnesota Star Tribune article which reported searches of Flock databases in the Twin Cities were used for immigration enforcement.
"The public deserves to know whether those searches were connected to actual enforcement actions inside of the city of Fridley, and the data today, although it's instructive and helpful, does not answer that question," said one person who spoke at the meeting. "And in the meantime, I think you should shut the cameras off. I think you should shut the cameras off, investigate what happened, and once we know what happened, make a decision about what to do with the program moving forward."
Fridley police noted they made changes and are restricting access to Minnesota agencies only, blocking immigration-related searches.
Still others praised how they make the community safer.
"I ask you to give meaningful weight to the public safety benefits these cameras can provide and to the peace of mind they offer families throughout our community," said another speaker. "Our city has a responsibility to use every reasonable, lawful tool available to improve public safety while maintaining appropriate oversight and accountability."
Total searches dropped from over 494,000 in January, to just over 22,000 in February.
Immigration-related searches fell from 107 to 0.
Reports say searches of Flock databases in the Twin Cities were used for immigration enforcement
Reports say searches of Flock databases in the Twin Cities were used for immigration enforcement
