Walton County Commission Votes 5–0 to Remove Flock Cameras from County Roads
The Walton County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously take down all Flock license plate reader cameras from county right-of-ways at its latest meeting.
The decision applies only to county-controlled roads and rights-of-way; many of the roughly 106 Flock cameras used by the Walton County Sheriff’s Office are on state roads or within city limits, outside the county’s direct jurisdiction.
A media request was submitted to the Walton County Board of County Commissioners late Tuesday evening to ask how many cameras would be taken down. We will update this story when we know more.
Privacy vs. Public Safety Questions Around Flock in Walton County
Commissioners described a flood of public feedback about the Flock system, which automatically scans and stores vehicle license plate data.
- Commissioner Donna Johns noted that the cameras have positive attributes: She said they have helped locate suspects and missing people.
- Skeptics, led by Commissioner Dan Curry, questioned the system’s rapidly expanding AI capabilities, the prospect of future facial recognition, and how long data is stored and shared.
Curry cited national concerns about ALPR systems, calling for transparency on contracts, policies, data retention, access lists, and search audit logs.
Commissioner Donna Johns said she felt “a little bit better” after a recent briefing with a representative about the “guardrails” the sheriff’s office uses—such as requiring a case number to run searches and monitoring for misuse—but still acknowledged that “the other side of it can be kind of scary.”
Public Comment: “Tyranny in Its Highest Form”
During public comment, Stan McDaniels of Escambia County, the man who’s case cleared the way for open carry in Florida, urged commissioners to scrap the cameras immediately, arguing they represent:
- A choice of “safety over liberty,” which he said leads to having neither.
- “Tyranny in its highest form” by keeping citizens under constant surveillance.
Jurisdiction and Next Steps
County Attorney Clay Adkinson advised the commission that:
- Roads inside city limits are generally under municipal control for right-of-way decisions, even if they’re labeled as county roads – meaning commissioners would not be able to take Flock cameras on those roads down unilaterally.
- The county’s vote therefore covers only county rights-of-way, not state or city streets.
Commissioner Tony Anderson said he wanted to talk with the sheriff’s office before voting, but the motion proceeded and ultimately passed 5–0.
