From the Sheriff’s Desk: Honoring the Call

After the County Commission voted to remove the Flock Camera system from the Sheriff’s Department budget last month, some residents have been wondering why some cameras are still up. Sheriff Steve Page has said that he told Flock the cameras can come down, and that he will honor the county’s decision regardless of his beliefs on the cameras. There are also some cameras outside of his control, as they belong to the city.

To prove that Flock has been informed of the county’s decision, Sheriff Page showed The Expositor the memo sent to Flock regarding the cameras. It stated that the cameras are unfunded and can come down, but as the Sheriff has said, it is now out of his hands, as he can only wait for Flock to come and retrieve them.

“Since the county wants them taken down, I will follow that,” said Sheriff Page.

Sheriff Page still feels that the cameras have so much benefit for the county. He said, “These cameras were put up for the safety of county residents, and so we would not have to hire more deputies. That’s 12 sets of eyes, and it saves us a lot of money on deputies.”

Sharing payroll numbers and the yearly costs of the cameras, Sheriff Page wagered that his department could save hundreds of thousands of dollars a year by relying on them. This, in addition to the benefits to safety, is why the County Commission agreed to budget for the Flock cameras in the past.

“When you hire a deputy, then equip that deputy, and then train that deputy?” said Page. “That costs way more to do that for a few new positions than to use these cameras.”

The reason the County Commission voted to remove the Flock system from the budget this past cycle was after multiple residents spoke in concern regarding privacy. Some of the commissioners agreed with the concerns, and then more voices were added on.

Sheriff Page says, however, that nobody has shown him any court cases or rulings that support that Flock violates any privacy issues. Flock themselves also claimed at the commission meetings that they do not sell data to third parties, that the data is deleted after a period, and that only agencies such as the Sheriff’s Department can access the data.

All in all, Sheriff Page is still resolved to honor the decision made by County Commissioners. He has told Flock to take the cameras down, so he says the matter is out of his hands now. The cameras in town, such as near Walmart, fall under city jurisdiction, so those have nothing to do with the Sheriff’s Department.