Greencastle police chief addresses Flock cameras

It has been a main point of emphasis in communities, and Greencastle Police Chief Christopher Jones has heard plenty about flock cameras, not only in Greencastle but around the state. 

Jones said Flock is a company specializing in license plate reader cameras. The basic units are positioned in specific geographical locations to record passing license plates.

"It is an investigative tool that law enforcement agencies use. For example, if we had an armed robbery at a business in town, and obtained a decent description of the vehicle and license plate, we log into this website. There is a whole audit system in place that can tell us if that license plate drove by that camera or not. That gives us a direction of travel and helps with the investigative process," Jones told The Putnam County Post. 

The veteran police chief said he knows residents have plenty of questions about the cameras, but noted there are certain things the cameras and his officers cannot do.

"It is not something you can monitor live. It is not something we can tap into to view live footage. They don't check speed or run radar on people. We don't use them for speed enforcement. All the information is already recorded and it is something our officers use as a tool. Everything is audited and recorded, and you cannot log in anonymously. It is a license plate reading camera that records the traffic driving by, takes a picture of the plates and holds that information for a certain amount of time and should something come up, we can check the license plate and see what direction it went," Jones said. 

Jones said the cameras give his department a huge advantage.

"We are on the low end when it comes to these cameras compared to other counties, but they are a great asset for our department. We use many tools at the police department, and our officers use them properly. "A Flock camera is just a tool to help us keep our community safe," Jones said.