James City County is tearing out its Flock Safety license plate readers and replacing them with cameras from Axon, the same company that already supplies the police department's in-car systems. County officials say the switch comes down to money and maintenance headaches, not the ongoing criminal case against a former officer accused of misusing the very system now being replaced.
The James City County Police Department notified Flock of its decision with a 30-day termination notice on Sept. 29, according to WYDaily. Patty Schlosser, the department's public information officer, said the county's frustration centered on Flock's customer service, specifically its responsiveness to maintenance requests and damaged cameras. She said those concerns did not amount to a risk to public safety or security.
The county currently runs 18 Flock cameras, seven of which were vandalized earlier this year, the outlet's report notes. Those cameras will keep operating and supporting law enforcement efforts until Flock physically removes them, since the county will continue using them throughout the transition.
Why Axon Won Out
James City County selected Axon partly because of customer service, security infrastructure, and overall cost, per the same report. The department already uses other Axon products, including its in-car cameras, and the new license plate reader system is expected to work with that same infrastructure. Unlike the leased Flock units, the new Axon cameras will be owned outright by the county — a distinction officials cited, along with lower costs, as among the biggest motivators for the switch.
The county plans to add four cameras to its current count, bringing the total to 22 fixed-site Axon license plate readers once installation is complete. Neither Schlosser nor the other official who spoke with the outlet could provide a timeline for when the new equipment would go in. A separate account from WAVY had earlier reported the county planned to trim its active camera count from 20 to 18, and noted that the existing Flock system retained detected vehicle data for 14 days.
Separating the Switch From the Eskandar Case
The timing invites an obvious question, since the vendor change follows criminal charges against former JCCPD officer Androu A. Eskandar, who is accused of misusing the license plate reader system. Schlosser said the decision to drop Flock was unrelated to that investigation or to broader safety concerns, and JCCPD told Flat Hat News that it ended its relationship with Flock for reasons unrelated to the officer's dismissal, even as it confirmed the contract was shifting to a different provider.
Eskandar, 30, resigned on April 17 after the alleged misuse was reported in March. He now faces 13 counts tied to the license plate reader system: five felony counts of computer invasion of privacy, three misdemeanor counts of the same charge, and five misdemeanor counts of improper use of an automated license plate reader system by law enforcement. The department has said he is alleged to have accessed the system for non-law-enforcement purposes connected to an internal matter involving coworkers.
Part of a Broader Reckoning With Flock
James City County's move fits a pattern playing out in cities nationwide. A nationwide movement against automated license plate reader systems has been fueled in part by reported misuse of the technology, and a Washington Post investigation cited by ABC News found at least 50 officers nationwide had been accused, charged, or convicted of using Flock's system and other plate readers to spy on people. A crowdsourced database cited by the Los Angeles Times counted roughly 100 cities that had deactivated Flock cameras, rejected new deals, or canceled existing agreements, with dozens ending or pausing relationships with the company and at least a handful signing on with Axon instead. Los Angeles itself declined to renew its Flock agreement over concerns about data sharing for immigration enforcement, while approving a city pilot using Axon readers.
Reno took a similar path, with its city council voting 5-2 to approve an eight-year agreement with Axon that includes license plate readers to replace Flock cameras — described by The Nevada Independent as a $21.8 million deal, while Nevada Current put the figure at $22 million. That Reno package also bundles in body cameras, Tasers, drones, and AI software to help officers write reports.
Fairfield, Connecticut, went further, removing all of its Flock equipment by Oct. 5 and standing up 54 Axon readers in areas police identified as public-safety priorities, according to CT Insider. Denver made the same switch after its Flock contract expired, signing a one-year, $150,000 deal with Axon reported by Axios, and Yahoo News later reported that searches of license plate reader data in Denver dropped more than 90% after the changeover, with the department describing its Axon system as still in a limited pilot phase with around a dozen authorized users.
For now, James City County residents will keep seeing the same Flock cameras on local roads until the company removes them, with no public timeline yet for when the 22 Axon units will take their place.
