Sheriff: No ‘Flock’ Cameras Used in Putnam County

In response to growing national questions about license plate reader technology, and in particular about the Flock Safety camera network in use in many communities across the country, law enforcement agencies in Putnam County are speaking with one voice to explain how the county’s system works, how it is different, and what it has done to keep Putnam residents safe.

Recent national reporting has raised serious concerns about commercially operated camera networks: data stored on a private company’s cloud, footage searchable by thousands of agencies nationwide, and searches conducted for purposes that residents never agreed to.

According to the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office, those concerns deserve straight answers, and in Putnam, the answer is simple: That system is not in use here.

“When residents read those stories, they deserve to know exactly how our program compares, and the answer is that it does not,” said Sheriff Brian Hess. “Putnam County deliberately chose not to join any commercial camera network. Our data sits on a government server controlled by law enforcement, right here in the region. It is never sold, never shared with private companies, and never available to some nationwide search network. If someone wants to search historical data, they need an active criminal investigation. Period.”

In short, Putnam County’s cameras are not Flock cameras and are not connected to any commercial, nationally searchable database. All data is stored on a government-owned server operated by law enforcement through the regional Real Time Crime Center partnership, not on a private company’s cloud. 

There is no integration with any third-party company or data broker, only local law enforcement officers have access, and a search of historical data requires an active criminal investigation.

The cameras photograph license plates only. There is no facial recognition, no identification of drivers or passengers, and no monitoring of ordinary residents. These are not speed cameras and they do not issue tickets. A plate that matches no alert list simply passes through.

In accordance with New York State Municipal Police Training Council standards, records are retained for two years and then permanently deleted.

“For us, this is a daily policing tool, not an abstraction,” said Carmel Police Chief Anthony Hoffmann. “Our department alone has used LPR in 42 cases so far this year: hit-and-run crashes, stolen cars, larcenies, a missing person. It helps us solve crimes that used to go unsolved, and it does it without watching a single law-abiding resident.”

From Jan. 1 through Aug. 11 of this year, the county’s 21 active fixed LPR sites generated 808 investigative alerts on 250 distinct vehicles of interest, or roughly 25 alerts per week.

This included 184 stolen vehicles (546 alerts).

“Stolen cars are rarely joyrides,” according to the sheriff’s office. “In our investigators’ experience, they are driven into Putnam by offenders intending to steal more vehicles and commit larcenies while hiding their identity. Real-time alerts let officers intercept them before the next crime happens.”

There were 27 known burglary crew vehicles identified (100 alerts) that were tied to residential burglaries across the region – many connected to New York City-based crews.

“When one of these vehicles shows up here, it is a strong indicator that a crew is canvassing our neighborhoods for target homes,” said the sheriff’s office. “Nearly half of these alerts (46 percent) fired at cameras on the county line, catching them at the moment they entered Putnam.”

Twenty-two vehicles were linked to organized retail theft rings (141 alerts), which are typically out-of-state criminal organizations that travel to Putnam specifically to steal from local stores.

And 17 vehicles were flagged in special alerts (21 alerts) for violent wanted suspects, missing or suicidal persons, and domestic violence cases.

“Within three days of installing our first camera, we identified the vehicle and suspect in a daytime home burglary within hours,” said Kent Police Chief Kevin Owens. “Since then our readers have helped capture a suspect wanted in a New York City shooting and break open a burglary series spanning six counties. These cameras earn their keep, and the data stays in law enforcement hands.”