Cumberland faces pressure to cancel Flock contract after false arrest lawsuit
By ยท Updated 9 Aug 2026
8 August 2026. [AI first draft. Verify every fact against the source before publishing.]
The ACLU of Rhode Island has called on the Cumberland Town Council to cancel its contract with Flock Safety, citing evidence that the cameras capture images of drivers and passengers in addition to license plates. The demand follows a federal lawsuit filed in June by private counsel on behalf of a woman who was falsely arrested after Cumberland Police used a Flock camera image to wrongly identify her as a vehicle driver. The arrest occurred after an officer observed a vehicle making turns without signaling, leading to a short car chase. Police then used Facebook to identify a suspect and a police report from March 2025 claimed that a Flock camera photo matched the plaintiff's license photo, resulting in her arrest.
The expanded surveillance capability was not disclosed when the town council approved the Flock purchase in 2024. The ACLU letter requests that the council publicly disclose all camera capabilities, specify when the expanded imaging of drivers and passengers began, detail how often this function has been used, and clarify whether this surveillance expansion was ever shared with the public. The demand for information comes as other Rhode Island communities reassess their Flock relationships. In the three weeks prior to the ACLU's letter, South Kingstown, Narragansett, and Glocester town councils voted to cancel their contracts.
The case, Pizzarelli v. Town of Cumberland, demonstrates the stakes of camera technology oversight. According to ACLU executive director Steven Brown, the false arrest exemplifies privacy concerns about Flock Safety and ALPR cameras more broadly, noting that the technology performs functions beyond plate recording and that secrecy around its expanded uses warrants concern. Residents in their own communities can review town council agendas and contract documents to determine whether Flock or other ALPR cameras were approved, when renewals are scheduled, and what capabilities were disclosed during the approval process.
Read the original reporting: SteveAhlquist.news.