It's a Cluster-Flock

My Flock is NOT controversial.

I've gotten many requests to draw a line in the sand about the ongoing controversy of the role of soon-to-be renewed(perhaps executed yesterday?) Flock Contract with the Madison County Sheriff's Department. At the discouragement of many responsible adults who want to see me elected, I will nonetheless go out on a limb and share 3 things that are top of mind for me on the Flock-troversy.

Thing 1. First, let me be clear: I am no expert on this topic. (Ask me about syphilis and I will wax poetic for hours!) I was looking forward to public comment at the June commissioner meeting to help inform me further. I enjoyed the interview Sarah Scully did with Deputy Duncan, a gentleman I have known for two decades, and hold in high esteem. I reached out to my son, recently graduated from law school, to understand some of the realities of the concerns people have voiced. I talked to the Asheville Mayor, who is wrestling with a similar controversy. I read articles, listened to media coverage, and sat with it. This topic is far too complex to do it justice in a pithy facebook response and I will undoubtedly continue to refine and develop my perspective on this topic.

Thing 2. I believe mass surveillance of non-criminals is a form of government overreach. Democrats have a reputation of being supportive of "big government" but in our current reality, the risks of these tools appear to outweigh the benefits given increasingly aggressive behaviors over the past 18 months by our administration in the deployment of ICE, disrespect for our constitution, and ignoring the role of our legal system. I do not have confidence the content being captured by mass surveillance can be guaranteed to be a tool used exclusively for good in society today. Take it a step further. I believe in Freedom of Speech and I love an energetic peaceful protest---I was in person for the Women's March in Washington DC in 2017, crushed in a crowd of half a million women and allies. The idea that using my voice constitutionally and nonviolently could result in being targeted by our government frightens me, as it does many of you.

Thing 3. Maintaining law and order is critical to our highly functioning society and I believe the work of law enforcement is very, very hard. The complexity of the Dark Web and the many-splendored ways people can choose to disregard the law is more abundant than ever. Particularly in a geographically large county with a small public service workforce, I see the appeal of any tool that can help law enforcement achieve their goals. The good news is, Madison County has one of the lowest crime rates of any county in our state(thanks in part to the effectiveness of our impressive public servants). Having said that, if I had a child kidnapped, or an elderly family member with dementia gone missing, the ability to find them and save their lives is made that much more possible with license plate recognition technology, right? Who would not want that if it meant saving your child or your mom's life?

If there was confidence that the data obtained by these cameras would be used explicitly by law enforcement for good...if there was confidence that even for the right price no one could obtain that data... if there was confidence that our national leaderships priorities aligned with our constitutional rights...well, if we had these confidences we would not be having this conversation today.

In conclusion, I support the great work of Sheriff Harwood and his team. At this moment in the history of our country, I cannot, however, endorse Flock cameras in Madison County without absolute assurances that the data obtained by the cameras would be solely at the use and discretion of our local law enforcement exclusively for purposes of maintaining public safety.