Despite warnings from police that Richmond’s license-plate cameras could be turned off if a provider isn’t selected soon, the Richmond City Council on Tuesday delayed that decision until it can review data on camera effectiveness and hear from a digital rights group.
For almost two weeks, Richmond police were hoping to get the council’s OK to switch from the controversial automatic license plate reading (ALPR) company Flock to a supposedly less problematic one, Axon.
But instead it appears more complicated than that, considering that the council, in a 4-1 vote, wants to hear a presentation from Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a digital rights, privacy, and cybersecurity law nonprofit, on the effectiveness of ALPRs. The council also asked staff to report back on Oct. 6 about how the city’s police department ALPR data could be compiled for the council to review.
The “no” vote came from council member Cesar Zepeda, with Soheila Bana and Jamelia Brown abstaining.
Claudia Jimenez, Doria Robinson and Sue Wilson co-sponsored the proposal to hear from EFF and bring in a third-party to review Richmond’s ALPR data and present it to the council.
Richmond police Chief Timothy Simmons told the council that postponing switching the camera contract to Axon couldmean there will be a period without working cameras. That’s because Flock’s contract expires Dec. 31, and Axon needs at least 90 days to make the switch and prefers 120 in case of shipping or installation delays.
“We have to negotiate the contract still and other elements besides just the 90-day Axon window that are tied to this,” Simmons said. “We’re looking at probably a four-month window so that’s why the item is here now so that there would be no downtime.”
Wilson said that her constituents have been pushing for more answers on ALPR technology.
“People are also asking us whether ALPRs are truly as effective at fighting crime, reducing crime, and solving crime as the vendors from companies like Flock and Axon claim,” Wilson said. “So before we decide to spend more money on automatic license plate readers, I think we owe constituents to seek out better information about 1. privacy and security risks, and 2. the effectiveness in fighting crime.”
The switch to Axon, according to city documents, would increase the cost of Axon’s current contract by $3.5 million, bringing the total to $12 million through September 2031, including the onboarding of ALPRs, CCTV cameras and a drone program. The company already provides the city with virtual reality training, body cameras and tasers.
Wilson said an EFF presentation would provide a “counterpoint” to what the surveillance firms have told the city.
“I’m not saying that the council members have to be convinced by a presentation from EFF but I do think everyone should hear it, just like we’re all going to listen to the Axon sales pitch tonight. Council members Robinson, Jimenez and I brought this item to close that information gap.”
Robinson explained that, though she co-sponsored the item, she differed from her colleagues’ opinions on ALPRs.
“I support license plate reader cameras,” Robinson said. “I believe that they are a 21st century tool that we shouldn’t bar the use of. That’s my general feeling, my general thought.”
License plate readers have caused tension between council members
In March, Robinson was the deciding vote in the move to restore the Flock ALPR cameras after they were paused for data vulnerability concerns, saying she wanted to see justice for crime victims. Her vote led to a tense exchange with Jimenez as the meeting adjourned.
Multiple sources told Richmondside in the aftermath of that vote that Robinson and Jimenez got into a heated conversation that culminated with Robinson questioning whether Jimenez cared about victims of violence in the Black community. Two days after the vote, Robinson posted on her campaign website that the two agreed to “respectfully disagree” on Flock and that they agreed on a “universe of other issues.”
Both Jimenez, who is running for mayor against Ahmad Anderson this November, and Robinson are endorsed by the Richmond Progressive Alliance, though Robinson is not an official member. Jimenez is the RPA steering committee chair. The two have also been endorsed by many of the same unions and organizations who funded independent committees for their respective campaigns in the June primary. Robinson won her June primary and begins her second term next year.
When Robinson met with Richmondside earlier this year to discuss her reelection campaign, she said that the experience of victims matters to her because she deals with it regularly in her district, which includes Atchison Village, the southern portion of the Iron Triangle, and the Coronado, Richmore Village/Metro Square, Pullman and Park Plaza neighborhoods.
“I was trying to point that out to others,” Robinson told Richmondside in April. “This is a real reality for people… If you’re the mom of a person who was shot in the face, to be told that there’s a tool out there that could help find the person who did it and bring up some justice but you’re not going to use it because the possibility that, you know, despite agreements (to not share data), that it may be used in a negative way to hurt another part of the community, it just feels unfair.”
On Tuesday night, Robinson said that she believes everyone is surveilled, to an extent, with technology like cellphones but said she believes the council should have more data to make a well-informed decision about ALPRs.
“I don’t think that we should be afraid of data,” Robinson said. “So, even though my current position, much to the chagrin of many of my usual, normal friends, is that I support this technology, I’m also not afraid to ask hard questions. And if those questions and that data comes back and says that it’s not what I think it is, then I’m prepared to accept that. But I also think that we need that data. We need to understand if it actually is effective, if we’re going to continue to invest in it. And this should be true for any technology that we’re willing to adopt.”
Others, however, were not as convinced that San Francisco-based EFF, founded in 1990, would deliver unbiased information.
Prior to the meeting, the Richmond Police Officers Association released a statement opposing the council’s plans.
“The item tells the Council it needs ‘objective, data-driven information’ and ‘multiple perspectives.’ It then proposes one perspective, from one organization, whose conclusion was published before it was ever invited to Richmond,” the press release reads, referencing EFF’s recent August policy position opposing the existence of ALPRs. “This is not due diligence. It is an advocacy presentation carrying the label of evidence, and it arrives at a moment when delay itself will cost Richmond residents.”
Zepeda questioned why the council would hear a presentation from EFF given that they’ve sued other cities using Flock, including San Jose, and that they’ve given an award to Secure Justice’s Executive Director Brian Hofer, a a former member of the Oakland Privacy Advisory Commission who sent the Richmond council a letter in March threatening litigation if the city continued their using Flock.
“So why would we open ourselves to litigation? We don’t allow someone else that’s suing us to come and present to us on their perspective,” Zepeda said. “Now I 1000% agree we need data. We should have data. We have received data. Some of the questions that have been asked in public comment, the chief has presented to us over and over.”
Zepeda referenced data that Simmons presented at the meeting when the council turned the Flock cameras back on, sayinf auto thefts increased when the cameras were off. Wilson pushed back during that meeting, saying that the stats were being “cherry picked.”
Brown, who represents District 1’s Iron Triangle and Belding Woods neighborhoods, said that the council continues to shift how it’s giving direction to Simmons after he found an alternative to Flock. She also said that she believes the council is protecting a “portion” of residents.
“I think all residents deserve protection and what a privilege it is to sit at a distance from violence and determine what level of protection should be enough for people who actually live with it,” Brown said, adding that it was insulting to say stats were being “cherry picked.”
Brown referenced a May incident at the St. Johns Apartments where a longtime maintenance worker, 64-year-old Melvin Murphy, was shot and killed. Authorities said Flock license plate readers helped them quickly locate and arrest a suspect, 31-year-old Jabari Fontenot, in Concord later that same day.
“It’s actual events that happen in real life, in real time,” Brown said. “I’m trying not to get frustrated because it doesn’t hit home until it hits home. Until it’s one of your loved ones that’s bleeding out on the street corner and your family wants justice and answers.”
When Wilson asked her if she was insinuating that the council was prioritizing Latino residents, Brown said that the entire debate around Flock has centered around protecting undocumented residents.
“We have a duty to protect our illegal immigrants hence all of the initiatives that have gone forth,” Brown said. “We are Richmond’s City Council members who took an oath of office to protect Richmond residents. What they’re doing in El Cerrito, what they’re doing in Albany, what they’re doing in Michigan or wherever else is none of my concern. And I think once we get focused on what our concern is, we won’t be here till 11:00.”
