Darth Vader to San Diego Metropolis Council: The Emperor preferred Flock cameras
In a galaxy not up to now, far-off — effectively, in San Diego — the controversial police use of Flock surveillance cameras that {photograph} and file license plate numbers has at the very least one distinguished supporter.
Darth Vader.
“The Emperor is a fan of Flock,” an individual carrying a full-body costume of the “Star Wars” villain instructed a committee of the San Diego Metropolis Council this week, referencing Darth Vader’s evil, power-hungry boss, Emperor Palpatine, ruler of the Galactic Empire.
“And we should proceed using Flock applied sciences in order that we will observe and surveil the Insurgent scum as they transfer from playground to playground, from playground to pool, from pool to gymnasium,” the particular person stated throughout public feedback at a Wednesday assembly of the Public Security and Livable Neighborhoods Committee.
The cosplayer, who breathed closely into the microphone a la the film villain, was formally referred to as to the rostrum by the title Darth Vader.
It was a stance a bit out of sync with silver display Darth, who famously instructed an Imperial stooge who obtained too braggadocious in regards to the Empire’s planet-destroying Loss of life Star: “Don’t be too pleased with this technological terror you’ve constructed.”
However in a twist not fairly as huge as Darth telling Luke Skywalker he was his daddy, the dangerous man in black confirmed as much as the federal government assembly in San Diego to be sarcastic about Flock cameras. He didn’t really help them in any respect.
Nor, it seems, did lots of people within the viewers, who hoisted indicators from the American Civil Liberties Union studying: “Get the Flock Out!”
The cosplayer’s sarcastic endorsement comes as Flock Security — the corporate whose greater than 120,000 synthetic intelligence-enabled license plate readers could be discovered alongside roadsides in each state however Alaska — comes beneath growing scrutiny by lawmakers, civil rights teams and members of the general public who’ve expressed privateness considerations.
Dozens of largely smaller cities have deactivated their Flock cameras or ended contracts with the corporate over considerations that it supplies information to the Trump administration that can be utilized to trace down immigrants for deportation.
And latest reporting by the Washington Publish uncovered at the very least 50 cases nationwide through which legislation enforcement officers had been accused of misusing their entry to the cameras, largely to stalk former romantic companions or residents.
Final month, the Los Angeles Police Division introduced it was pausing its relationship with Flock, however police officers later stated they had been within the technique of negotiating a brand new cope with the corporate that would come with extra data-sharing safeguards.
Each Mayor Karen Bass and her opponent within the November mayoral election, Councilmember Nithya Raman, have stated the town ought to cease working with Flock.
The corporate, whose automated license readers doc plate information as automobiles drive previous, says it has partnerships with 5,000 legislation enforcement companies nationwide.
Amid public backlash, the corporate introduced this month a number of platform modifications, together with a shorter information retention window and audit instruments for legislation enforcement prospects supposed to flag irregular search habits.
In San Diego, Flock cameras are affixed to streetlights in about 500 places, in accordance with the 2025 Annual Surveillance Report by the San Diego Police Division.
Along with plate numbers, the report states, the cameras file the date, time and placement of the scan, in addition to car descriptors corresponding to make, mannequin and coloration.
The knowledge is encrypted and transmitted to a safe database that may be accessed solely by San Diego police personnel, in accordance with the division. The information is saved for 30 days and robotically deleted until it’s getting used as proof in an energetic investigation, in accordance with the division.
The report says San Diego law enforcement officials final 12 months carried out greater than 244,000 investigative searches of the info and that it performed a “key function in advancing 361 instances.”
The information, per the division, helped officers get well 259 stolen automobiles and discover 4 lacking individuals, in addition to aiding the investigations of round 9 of the town’s 28 homicides in 2025.
In a presentation to the Public Security and Livable Neighborhoods Committee in November, San Diego Police Capt. Charles Lara stated the expertise “has been really game-changing for our division, particularly whereas we proceed to function with a whole bunch of officers beneath perfect staffing ranges.”
Lt. Kristopher McAndrew stated the “overwhelming majority of knowledge is rarely seen” and that the police division doesn’t share information with federal or out-of-state legislation enforcement companies or personal entities.
On the assembly this week, Darth Vader — who, like everybody else who approached the rostrum, was allotted two minutes of talking time — stated of the Flock digicam system: “I would like this so I can stalk my ex-girlfriend.”
He requested the Metropolis Council members how residents will proceed to belief them once they proceed to vote “for surveillance expertise that imprisons them.”
He suggested one of many council members to work on her Jedi thoughts tips to idiot them, then raised his hand to the viewers, saying: “Do it like this.”
“This expertise will assist us discover the Insurgent scum and their hidden base on Hoth,” he stated, referencing the ice planet within the “Star Wars” universe. “This expertise will assist us discover Luke Skywalker as he traverses the universe in his X-wing. This expertise is a needed, needed pressure.”
