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License-plate readers · Taylor County

Taylor County

Program documented, current use unconfirmed · 2 agencies documented

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Perry Police Department

Status
Ended or removed
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
15
15 Perry Police Department cameras of about 24 Flock cameras in operation or being installed in Taylor County (Perry Newspapers, May 20, 2026).
Contract
Flock Safety: trial program; ended by City Council; amount not reported · to July 28, 2026 (Perry News-Herald (perrynewspapers.com), July 31, 2026; Perry News-Herald (perrynewspapers.com), Aug. 7, 2026)
  1. May 12, 2026 City Council members questioned the authorization and installation of Flock cameras ("Who authorized that?"). (Perry News-Herald (perrynewspapers.com), May 20, 2026)
  2. July 28, 2026 City Council voted unanimously to end the Flock Safety trial and have the cameras removed from the city. Police Chief Jamie Cruse had recommended a scaled-down program. Individual votes not itemized beyond "unanimously." (Perry News-Herald (perrynewspapers.com), July 31, 2026; WCTV, Aug. 3, 2026)
  3. July 31, 2026 Chief Cruse: "All officers were instructed to immediately stop using the ALPR cameras and any system data for operations or enforcement." Cameras were later covered with black plastic bags. (Perry News-Herald (perrynewspapers.com), Aug. 7, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • Perry Newspapers spells the chief's name both "Jamie Cruse" and "James Cruse."

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Taylor County Sheriff's Office

Status
Program documented, current use unconfirmed
Vendors
Flock Safety
Cameras
Count not documented
Conflict, not resolved: a Perry Newspapers photo caption (May 20, 2026) says about 24 Flock cameras were in operation or being installed in Taylor County, '15 by the Perry Police Department and 9 with the Taylor County Sheriff's Office.' In August 2026 the undersheriff told county commissioners the county owns no Flock cameras, that the cameras in the county are owned by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, and that the Sheriff's Office has access to them. No count of FDLE cameras in the county was found.
Data sharing
Not stated. The undersheriff described the Sheriff's Office as having access to FDLE-owned cameras.
  1. May 20, 2026 Perry Newspapers photo caption: 'Approximately 24 Flock license plate reader cameras' in operation or being installed in Taylor County, '15 by the Perry Police Department and 9 with the Taylor County Sheriff's Office.' (Perry Newspapers, May 20, 2026)
  2. Aug. 3, 2026 Undersheriff Marty Thompkins (WCTV spelling): 'The fact is that Taylor County doesn't have any owned cameras in our county' and 'we have no contract with any vendor at this time'; 'we do have access to FDLE cameras.' He said the FDLE cameras are 'only used for things like silver alerts, kidnappings and murder suspects,' access requires a law enforcement reason, and cameras are audited. (WCTV, Aug. 3, 2026)
  3. Aug. 4, 2026 At the Board of County Commissioners meeting, Undersheriff Marty Tompkins (WTXL spelling) said 'the county does not own any Flock cameras,' 'the cameras are owned by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement,' the county 'does not have a contract with any company,' and 'the sheriff's office has access to the system for criminal investigations'; deputies must 'document the request with a case number.' Commissioners said the county 'has not spent money on Flock cameras' and said they would work with the county attorney on a public records request, including 'how many are in Taylor County.' (WTXL ABC 27, Aug. 4, 2026)
  4. Sept. 1, 2026 WFSU listed Taylor County among counties that had not published a statement WFSU could identify and had not returned requests for comment on the FDOT order (article updated Sept. 3, 2026). (WFSU News, Sept. 1, 2026)
Conflicts and open questions
  • Conflict: Perry Newspapers (May 20, 2026) attributes 9 Flock cameras to the Sheriff's Office; the undersheriff (Aug. 3-4, 2026, WCTV and WTXL) says the county and office own none and the cameras belong to FDLE. Both reports may describe the same cameras (FDLE-owned, used by TCSO), but no source says so. Status 'unconfirmed': the office reports using FDLE cameras, but nothing was found on use after the Aug. 31, 2026 FDOT order.
  • The undersheriff's surname is spelled 'Thompkins' (WCTV) and 'Tompkins' (WTXL).
  • Official minutes of the Aug. 4, 2026 BOCC meeting were not found. The Govly summary (nc2-govly-taylor-0804) is a lead only.

Reported by news outlets; agency records not yet obtained.

Statewide

  1. Aug. 31, 2026 The Florida Department of Transportation revoked permits and ordered all automated license-plate readers off state roads within 30 days. Gov. Ron DeSantis: "I don't want to have this become a surveillance state." (Axios Tampa Bay, Sept. 1, 2026; WUSF, Sept. 2, 2026)
  2. Sept. 30, 2026 The 30-day deadline for removing license-plate readers from state roads passed. (Florida Phoenix, Sept. 30, 2026)