The Briefing
- San Diego Councilmember Stephen Whitburn reversed his years-long support for Flock automated license plate reader cameras on October 13, calling for an immediate contract cancellation and network shutdown.
- Whitburn cited growing anxiety among immigrant residents over the potential federal misuse of surveillance data as the reason his position became untenable — arguing that a tool which generates widespread fear has lost its right to be called a public safety asset.
- His defection appears to hand the anti-Flock bloc a working council majority ahead of a scheduled December vote, while an ACLU lawsuit filed the prior month simultaneously challenges the program on California constitutional grounds in court.
