DETROIT, MI- Five police agencies located in Metro Detroit conducted Flock ALPR data for immigration-related inquiries since the beginning of last year, The Detroit Newsreports. The information was provided as a result of public records requests for audit logs.
The News was clutching its pearls because multiple police agencies that use Flock camera technology pinky swore that they would not use the technology for immigration enforcement.
One (now former) law enforcement official who used the Flock database could find himself in legal jeopardy. A former deputy employed by the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, who was not identified, allegedly used the database after he terminated employment with the agency. He allegedly made “dozens of searches” in the Flock database.
The agency’s ALPR policy states that the only valid use of the system is to alert officers to the presence of a vehicle on a “hot list,” locate a criminal suspect, or assist in locating a missing person. The county’s Public Information Officer, Tyler Sweers, said using the system for immigration-related queries “were unauthorized and violate our policy.”
Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard, citing the ongoing investigation, refused to comment on the issue. Meanwhile, the Oakland County Prosecutor’s Office said no criminal charges had yet been filed.
An analysis of USA Today data by The Detroit News found over 120 Flock searches from 12 Michigan law enforcement agencies with the keyword's “immigration” or “ICE” since January 2025. Some of those searches were typos or mistakes; for example, entering “ICE” instead of “VICE.” Five agencies, however, confirmed their officers conducted immigration-related searches.
Besides Oakland, the other four agencies were the Taylor, Southfield, Troy, and Brownstown Township police departments.
The White Lake Township Police Department also conducted one search in March, however Chief Matthew Ivory said it was related to an internal affairs investigation involving one of its officers. He emphasized that no federal agency was contacted as a result of the inquiry.
Flock provides ALPR technology to police departments and other law enforcement agencies nationwide, with around 180 departments in Michigan availing themselves of the technology. The company has deployed about 120,000 cameras across the country.
While the cameras have raised fourth amendment concerns, they have proven invaluable in solving crimes, including missing persons, homicides, kidnappings, and, in one Denver case, the quick recovery of a stolen vehicle containing a 14-month-old baby. The Richland County Sheriff’s Office credits Flock cameras with leading to 687 “investigative successes.”
In March, Oakland County Undersheriff Timothy Willis told city council members in Pontiac City that the agency has never been asked to share data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) nor had volunteered such information.
“Our interest is not deporting people. That is not what we do,” Willis told the council.
“I want to make it very, very clear: the sheriff’s office does not enforce immigration status offenses. We don’t. We don’t have any agreement with ICE, and we don’t in the future plan to participate in any ICE enforcement,” he said.
There are currently two bills in the Michigan legislature, one in the House and one in the state Senate that would limit how long agencies can retain Flock data and require search logs to be published publicly.
Activists claim that abuse of the technology is prevalent “across the country,” which does not comport with reality.
“This is something that’s been discovered across the country,” said Alexis Huyck, one of the leaders of a group called Oakland County Aid for Empowerment (CAFE). She said it did not matter that the Oakland County sheriff was no longer employed by the agency when he allegedly made the searches.
Investigative reporting by several media outlets, including the Washington Post, USA TODAY, CNN, and others has identified between 50 to 100 cases nationwide of law enforcement personnel accused, charged, fired, or investigated for unauthorized use of Flock/ALPR cameras.
Taylor Police Chief John Blair oversees the only agency in Metro Detroit that has a signed 287(g) agreement with ICE.
“Nothing has changed in our agency regarding illegal immigrant enforcement in the 35+ years I’ve been with the City of Taylor Police Department. The 297G program has not altered a single thing,” Blair wrote to The Detroit News in an email.
He also emphasized that the department does not use Flock cameras for immigration enforcement, “because we have neither the time or desire to actively search for someone illegally in our country.”
He said that any Taylor police officer who uses a Flock camera for personal reasons will be terminated.
He also defended the Flock cameras.
“People are going to continue to complain about FLOCK until something happens to someone they care about themselves, and the police have to tell them sorry,” Taylor wrote in the email. “We could have saved your loved one, but you took away one of the greatest tools to locating criminals because you were afraid of your privacy being invaded.”
There have been some isolated cases where Flock cameras were used primarily for criminal investigations where the party of interest was also an illegal alien. But area police chiefs contacted said their departments do not use the Flock cameras specifically for immigration enforcement.
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