The Flock camera debate continues in Carrollton and Dallas. <\/p>\n
The Carrollton City Council will discuss the issue at its Sept. 15 meeting. There is a proposal to renew and extend their contract, potentially adding 15 more cameras and the software required to run them.<\/p>\n
Carrollton Police already have access to 67 Flock cams in the city. Police said the cameras have been instrumental in solving several crimes this year.<\/p>\n
Opponents told NBC 5 they plan to make their voices heard at the city council meeting.<\/p>\n
The city of Dallas is also considering its future with Flock. Hundreds of Flock cameras in the city were supposed to go dark, but police told NBC 5 they’ll stay online for now as the city attorney’s office reviews the matter. <\/p>\n
Gov. Greg Abbott blocked state agencies from spending money on Flock cams. There are 684 Flock cams citywide; nearly half are paid for by the state. The half paid for by the state are the ones at risk of being shut down.<\/p>\n
Flock cams also serve as license plate readers that give officers the ability to type in a plate and almost instantly find out if it drove by one of the cams. License plate readers have been on police patrol vehicles for decades, but Flock’s nationwide network of cameras has sparked new concerns.<\/p>\n
Dallas Police said they helped solve 13% of the city’s business robbery cases and a dozen homicides in 2026 alone.<\/p>\n
But local and state officials have expressed concern about overreach, privacy, and abuse of power.<\/p>\n
Dallas City Council could vote on its Flock contract on Sept. 16.<\/p>\n
Dallas Police announced new limits on who can access their Flock camera data just last week, preventing outside agencies from access and restricting sharing to agencies within Texas.<\/p>\n
At one point, Dallas Police was sharing with more than 1,500 agencies nationwide; now it’s a little more than 200 in Texas.<\/p>\n