c's trust, said Dane County Board Chair Patrick Miles. even here close to home, they were violating peoples trust so we pulled the funding from the shierff's office to not renew that contract. but at same time we acknowledge that its important technology.. He said Dane County has since restored that funding to the sheriff's office - however not to use with Flock but a different tech company. Related article FOX6 News reached out to Flock What they're saying: Meantime, FOX6 News reached out to Flock and asked the following questions. They sent the following responses: Patrick Miles called Flock Safety a proven bad actor and said its technology is used to violate Fourth Amendment rights. What is Flock's response to that characterization and the board's decision to defund the 2026 contract? We strongly disagree with the characterization of Flock as a proven bad actor. Flock's license plate readers capture objective, point-in-time images of vehicles and license plates in public view. They do not use facial recognition, identify individuals, or collect personal information such as names, phone numbers, or home addresses. More than 40 courts across the country have upheld the constitutionality of responsibly deployed license plate reader systems. Flock also builds accountability into the platform: every search requires a documented reason and creates a permanent audit trail that agencies can review. The Dane County Sheriff's Office and agencies across the country all solved countless serious crimes and made a measurable public safety impact with Flock technology. When a tool that is actively helping solve violent crimes is removed, public safety moves backward. That has real consequences: cases will take longer to solve, organized retail theft crews will operate with fewer obstacles, an Amber Alert may not be returned home, and victims may wait longer, or indefinitely, for justice. Related article Does Flock plan to engage with the Dane County Board or the Sheriff's Office to propose alternative data-sharing limits, or is the relationship effectively terminated? Flock is always open to engaging with communities and elected leaders. How does Flock respond to growing public resentment toward the technology in everyday neighborhoods, and what steps are you taking to rebuild community trust? We understand that people have legitimate questions about any technology used by law enforcement, and we welcome that conversation. The platform is designed around local control. Agencies own and control their data, access is limited to authorized users, every search requires a documented reason, and every search is permanently logged. Data is automatically deleted after 30 days by default unless an agency establishes a different retention period consistent with applicable law and policy. Flock also provides tools such as Audit Assistance to help agencies identify unusual search patterns and address potential misuse proactively. We will continue listening, answering questions directly, and improving our products and policies based on community feedback. We do not believe communities should have to choose between privacy and public safety. Any comment on recent investigations and cases involving law-enforcement misuse, including the Milwaukee officer recently sentenced to probation? Any misuse of the Flock system is unacceptable, and anyone who violates the law or agency policy should be held accountable. We defer to the Milwaukee Police Department, prosecutors, and the courts regarding the specific facts and proceedings in this case. FOX6 News recorded a few on-camera soundbites from Garrett Langley, CEO and founder of Flock, addressing misuse, how Flock's Audit Assistance works, and the safeguards built into the platform. Waukesha also had a Flock-related incident recently. Police there say a Flock camera was damaged. They are looking for a person of interest. Police believe the suspect used a metal pole to strike the Flock camera. Portions of this article were formatted using A.I. FOX6's [reporter name] and an editor reviewed it for accuracy and tone prior to publishing. Related article