Moundsville Residents Want Flock Cameras Removed
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MOUNDSVILLE — A handful of residents expressed concern Tuesday about the city of Moundsville’s new Flock license plate reader cameras, asking that the devices be removed and one man demanding that City Manager Rick Healy be fired for making the purchase.
The comments were made during City Council’s regular meeting. One resident, William Wood of Ninth Street, said he wanted Healy to be removed from his position because he did not consult City Council before making the Flock purchase.
“I feel Rick Healy should be removed from his position or his contract not renewed, and have his power stripped if he can’t be removed until a new person can be put in place,” Wood said. “For him to bypass City Council whether he has a right to or not on the Flock camera situation shows a lack of social and political awareness that I don’t feel what Moundsville needs.”
Later in the meeting, Vice Mayor Sara Wood-Shaw said she wanted to defend Healy, adding that he is legally allowed to make such purchases as long as they are $25,000 or less. Councilwoman Ginger DeWitt noted that when she was asked by residents about the cameras she did not know that the city had purchased any. She said she wished Healy had at least sent council members an email about them.
After the meeting, Moundsville Police Chief Tom Mitchell said his department did request that the Flock cameras be purchased for installation along W.Va. 2 in the city. He noted the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department has been using the same type of cameras for a while. He said between the two departments there are now eight cameras in total, mainly along W.Va. 2 in the county and city. No cameras are installed in residential areas, he added.
During the meeting, another resident, Derek Kaiser of North Street, spoke on the camera issue as well. Kaiser said that he and other residents want the cameras removed immediately. He said he has contacted the ACLU of West Virginia about the matter.
“The ACLU strongly opposes the use of LPRs, stating they are a threat to the privacy and safety of citizens, and are a form of unwanted mass surveillance,” Kaiser said. “LPR cameras create criminal profiles for people who are not criminals. They collect information and metadata that is not visible to the naked eye. The data is shared not only with police jurisdictions, but is also shared with private organizations like HOAs and private businesses who possess the cameras.”
Kaiser added the cameras pose a risk for the mishandling of private information.
“They open the city up for unnecessary lawsuits that we cannot afford,” he said, adding that the city of Huntington, West Virginia, is being sued by the ACLU of West Virginia and residents over such cameras.
“West Virginia Code 8-12-18 says a city must give notice by having public hearings before allowing a private business access to the use of city property,” Kaiser said. “I have contacted the ACLU of West Virginia about this problem. Will Moundsville, West Virginia, be the next to be sued?”
Kaiser said there are examples of such cameras being misused in other states.
“The Washington Post documented dozens of cases where police used the databases to repeatedly track spouses and ex-spouses and acquaintances,” he said. “A Milwaukee officer resigned after an audit found that he searched his romantic partner 124 times and his partner’s ex 55 times.”
Kaiser expressed concern about the possibility of more cameras being installed in the future.
“Today, there’s only four (cameras) in the city, but next year it will just be four more until Moundsville becomes a mass surveillance state,” he said. “I ask you consider the rights of Moundsville citizens … and ban these evil cameras.”
Kaiser also read a statement against the Flock cameras from a resident who could not attend the meeting.
Another resident, Levi Carney of Second Street, also expressed concern about the cameras. He noted he is mostly concerned about how future city leaders and law enforcement could use or misuse the cameras.
“Right now, we have a wonderful City Council and city manager who are listening to the citizens and our Heavenly Father, seeking his guidance, but there will come a time when we don’t have such wonderful people on our City Council,” Carney said.
In response to the residents’ concerns, Councilman Don DeWitt made a motion to have a council subcommittee discuss the cameras in the future. Council unanimously approved his motion.
After the meeting, Healy declined to comment on Wood’s comments calling for his removal from his job.