To the editor:

Froma Harrop (10/9/26 LJW) says being observed by Flock cameras is little different from being observed by other people in public places. She’s seriously misinformed.

Flock and similar cameras are being attached to AI license plate readers and face recognizers in large numbers and linked together in massive data centers. Consequently, nearly every location of every individual in those cities can be tracked continuously without a warrant. That means:

∙     You can’t speed or run a red light without leaving records cops could exploit.

∙     You can’t have a meeting in secret.

∙     Public political protests can’t be anonymous.

∙     The police can find all the contacts in your political circle.

∙     The police can find anyone they want to arrest at a moment’s notice.

∙     The police can know all of your sexual contacts.

∙     Unscrupulous rogue cops can stalk or blackmail you.

This new surveillance capability is worse than any police state anywhere. Any future U.S. dictator who consolidates his rule will have a pre-existing police state.

Harrop also says the police can be trusted with this awesome power. But suppose as many as 99% of cops are trustworthy. That still suggests there’s a bad cop in most departments of 100 cops, and in most towns of 50,000 persons. (LPD has fired several.)

If you think this is exaggerated, please consider:

∙     There are already over 50 known cases of cops using license plate readers to stalk someone illegally.

∙     Approximately 10% of police departments cooperate formally with masked thugs and murderers from ICE — and most others do so voluntarily.

David Burress,

Lawrence