License Plate Readers Spread Across Southeastern NC as Privacy Debate Grows
License Plate Readers Spread Across Southeastern NC as Privacy Debate Grows
Publish Date: 2026-06-04 19:21:00
Source Domain: foxy99.com
License plate readers now dot every county in southeastern North Carolina. Law enforcement has poured hundreds of thousands into this tracking system. The New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office alone spent $219,000 on a deal with Flock Safety, the private firm behind these cameras.
Each passing car triggers a snapshot of its plate. Images are uploaded to servers, sitting there for 30 days minimum. Officers punch in a plate number, make, or paint job—boom, they’ve got every spot that car hit during that stretch.
Sheriff’s offices in New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender, and Columbus counties all run Flock contracts, while the Wilmington Police Department stays out of it, according to city officials.
DeFlock, a group fighting these cameras nationwide, built a map pinpointing readers across the area using tips from regular people. Mark Williams works as an attorney in Wilmington and fights against the cameras through DeFlock.
“I believe in freedom. I didn’t sign up to live in China. And I don’t want the government watching me,” Williams said, according to WECT.
Sheriff’s departments call these readers crime-solving gear. Columbus County runs six cameras hunting for hot cars, lost people, and suspects on the run.
Paris Lewbel speaks for Flock Safety. She says cameras aided over a million criminal probes across America last year, tackling everything from break-ins to killings to vanished children.
“That’s a staggering number, and it shows the technology is really working in helping bring victims justice and solve crimes,” Lewbel said.
Back in March, Whiteville Police Chief Paul Rockenbach credited plate readers for cracking a murder. On March 5, a camera flagged a car tied to someone the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office wanted.
“I’m excited to know that we can put technology out there that is going to help keep our community safer,” Chief Rockenbach said.
Lewbel claims Flock never touches captured records, putting sharing choices in customers’ hands. Which agencies get access to…
