Douglas County Sheriff | Flock Safety license plate readers
Bought jointly with East Wenatchee on an auto-theft grant, kept through the 2026 law with the board's minuted support, and extended to watching the county dump.
At a glance
- The grant
- 11 November 2024: commissioners approve the interlocal with East Wenatchee for the Washington Auto Theft Prevention Grant "jointly received to support Flock Cameras in both the City of EW and DC" (the minutes, verbatim); 15 cameras between the two agencies per the Atlas [1] [2]
- Through the statute
- 1 June 2026, ten weeks after RCW 10.130 took effect: "Board is supportive of Flock cameras in the County right-of-way" (the minutes) [1]
- The second job
- 13 July 2026: the solid-waste discussion floats "Possible trail cameras or portable Flock Camera"; 27 July 2026, Sheriff Tyler Caille: "Flock Camera has been installed at pit site to monitor scrap metal drop off" [1]
- Oversight trace
- A "Flock System Update" delivered to the board by Chief Deputy Prosecutor James Michell, 2 February 2026; the materials are in the records queue [1]
- State law
- RCW 10.130 requires AG registration before operation and a published policy by December 2027; neither appears in the record we read [3]
How it happened
- Debate
Placement discussion scheduled
The board asks to schedule the Sheriff to discuss license plate readers and placement. [1]
- Decision
The joint grant interlocal
Commissioners approve the interlocal cooperative agreement with East Wenatchee for the jointly received state auto-theft grant supporting Flock cameras in both jurisdictions. [1]
- Context
Supportive, post-statute
The board minutes its support for Flock cameras in the county right-of-way. [1]
- Expansion
A camera for the dump
The Sheriff reports a Flock camera installed at the solid-waste pit site to monitor scrap-metal drop-off — enforcement of dumping, not auto theft. [1]
From stolen cars to scrap metal
The network’s origin is orthodox: a state auto-theft grant, split with the neighboring city, approved on a consent motion. What makes Douglas County’s record valuable is what the minutes captured afterward. The board’s post-statute support is written down. And when the county’s solid-waste operation had a dumping problem, the tool at hand was the plate reader network, so a Flock camera went up at the pit site, reported by the Sheriff in the same minutes that cover a bison herd and National Night Out.
A camera bought to find stolen cars now logs everyone who visits the dump. Nobody decided that in a surveillance policy; it accreted, one practical decision at a time, which is how scope grows everywhere. The statute’s December 2027 policy deadline will require the county to write down what the system is actually for.
What we do not know
- The dump camera's authority, funding, and data-handling — a use outside the auto-theft grant's stated purpose.
- The AG registration and the use policy the statute requires by December 2027.
- The February 2026 Flock System Update materials.
What you can do
Show up
Systems like this one are approved by boards, councils and committees that meet in public. We have not yet confirmed where each of them meets in Douglas County.
What we have documented in Douglas County →Protect yourself
Practical steps to shrink your personal data trail. Our guides publish at launch; until then, EFF's Surveillance Self-Defense is the best starting point.
Surveillance Self-Defense →Sources
- 1.
- 2. EFF Atlas of Surveillance, East Wenatchee PD / Douglas County joint Flock row · Dataset · accessed
- 3. Revised Code of Washington 10.130, Washington State Legislature · Law · accessed
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