Cities scramble after Washington judge rules ALPR images are public records

Cities worry after judge says cameras break laws

The fear started on November 6, 2025, when a judge in Skagit County, WA, ruled that images of cars taken by Flock ALPR cameras are public records. This poses a significant legal challenge for serving about 4,800 law enforcement agencies (plus 1,000 businesses) as of March 2025.

Two cities, Sedro-Woolley and Stanwood, shut down their systems. Officials worry that releasing countless photos of drivers and their vehicles would be a massive violation of privacy.

Cities worried about public records law

This legal issue is related to the state’s Public Records Act, which requires government data to be made publicly available. The cities argued their data should be protected under privacy laws.

The judge denied the claim on November 6, 2025. He ruled the cameras’ vast surveillance was “indiscriminate.” This means the system monitors everyone who drives, not just criminals, which creates a massive dataset that must be shared.

Flock safety cameras were valued at $3.5B

The company that manufactures this traffic enforcement technology, Flock Safety, has experienced tremendous success. It was valued at $3.5 billion in 2022.

The system sells a vast, shared network that can instantly link over 5,000 police agencies across state lines. This is why the risk to driver privacy is so high. The data is all pulled together, meaning a local traffic camera monitors traffic nationally.

Cameras capture 1,800 plates per minute

This traffic technology is powerful because it collects vehicle data at very high speeds. Flock cameras can read and process 1,800 license plates per minute.

They work even when cars travel at speeds of up to 160 miles per hour. Beyond the plate number, the system records a car’s color, model, and distinctive features, such as a roof rack. This highly detailed travel log for all passing vehicles is stored for a minimum of 30 days.

$4.2m paid to 500,000 ticketed drivers

Lawsuits have often been filed against red-light cameras due to financial concerns. In 2019, 18 towns in New Jersey settled a lawsuit for $4.2 million. The case involved nearly 500,000 drivers who received $85 tickets.

The lawsuit argued that a conflict of interest existed because the camera operator was paid based on the number of tickets issued. The 500,000 drivers in the lawsuit only received $8.50 each.

Judge throws out 300 red-light camera tickets

Before the privacy fight, the evidence from these traffic cameras was questioned. In September 2001, a San Diego Superior Court judge threw out nearly 300 red-light camera tickets.

The judge ruled the photos were “hearsay.” This legal term refers to the fact that a machine’s evidence is not the same as a person’s testimony and cannot be questioned in court. The judge found the automated system was “untrustworthy” without human oversight.

Canadian city shuts down speed camera program

The problems with traffic enforcement cameras extend beyond the U.S. The City of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, had to end its speed program on November 13, 2025.

This happened because the government of Ontario passed a law banning all speed cameras across the province. Before the ban, city data showed that cameras helped improve traffic safety, cutting the average vehicle speed by 9 kilometers per hour.

Chicago study shows 2 times tickets in one area

Unfair traffic enforcement is a serious issue for drivers. A ProPublica study of Chicago tickets from 2015 to 2019 found a clear problem. Households in Black and Latino areas received tickets at 2 times the rate of white areas.

This unequal ticketing resulted in thousands of financial hardships for residents, including the suspension of their driver’s licenses, over the 4-year study period. This indicates a problem with the camera’s aiming.

One police office ran 5,770 cross-agency searches

The power of the shared network is shown by how vehicles are monitored. On December 19, 2024, a police officer in Lowndes County, Georgia, ran one search that instantly pulled data from 5,770 other agencies across the U.S.

This vast number shows how a small city’s traffic camera becomes part of a national network. One local officer can instantly access travel data from across the entire country.

2024 records show ice using city camera data

The traffic data is often used by federal groups, which causes problems for city governments. FOIA records released on January 23, 2024, confirmed that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) used the ALPR data.

ICE accessed the Flock network to track the movements of specific vehicles. Many cities do not want their local surveillance tools, which are meant for traffic safety, used for federal enforcement actions.

Traffic safety can be fixed without cameras

Some traffic experts argue that changing road design is more effective than using cameras to issue fines to drivers. An intersection camera setup can cost from $60,000 to $150,000.

Experts suggest that this money should be allocated to physical improvements to the road. Simple updates, like adding protected bike lanes, reduce accidents more safely and without causing privacy issues for drivers and their vehicles.

Wondering what happens if you get a ticket while driving abroad? Find out how traffic tickets work when driving outside your home country.

Privacy rules needed for 21 states with laws

The court rulings indicate that the laws governing this traffic technology are outdated. As of October 2025, 22 states and the District of Columbia permit red-light cameras (and 9 states prohibit them). For speed cameras, 19 states and D.C. permit use, while 10 states prohibit them.

The Washington ruling highlights significant privacy gaps in these 15-year-old laws. New laws are urgently needed to manage data privacy and use for these robust new camera systems that are being used to enforce traffic.

Curious why Tesla’s Full Self-Driving system is under federal review? Get the details in Tesla faces federal probe into 2.9 million vehicles over FSD traffic-violation reports.

Do traffic cameras keep roads safe or cross the line on privacy? Tell us your view below.

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This slideshow was made with AI assistance and human editing.