OLYPHANT, PA — Olyphant Borough police clarified that they are not installing stationary Flock surveillance cameras following social media speculation surrounding Tuesday's borough council agenda. Concerns arose after residents noticed an agenda item related to license plate reading technology, leading many to believe the borough was deploying fixed-pole Flock Safety cameras throughout the municipality. However, Olyphant Police Chief James DeVoe explained that the department is instead utilizing mobile automatic license plate reader systems manufactured by Axon.
While both technologies assist law enforcement in identifying vehicles tied to active investigations, key operational and privacy distinctions separate the two systems. Stationary Flock systems rely on fixed, standalone poles positioned at intersections or borough borders. In contrast, the Axon Fleet 3 units adopted by Olyphant mount directly inside active police patrol cruisers, scanning license plates only while officers are actively driving through neighborhoods or monitoring traffic on shift. Chief DeVoe emphasized that the Axon units do not feature voice or facial recognition capabilities. The system functions exclusively as a license plate scanner, comparing passing plates against state databases to quickly alert officers to active warrants, stolen vehicles, expired registrations, or missing persons flags, providing an operational tool for patrol without creating a permanent surveillance grid across the borough.
