Class Action Challenges Boulder Police's Use of Flock Cameras for Warrantless Tracking
Two Boulder residents filed a class-action lawsuit over warrantless surveillance via 31 Flock cameras.
Why it matters: The lawsuit spotlights expanding legal scrutiny on municipal police surveillance and data-sharing with federal immigration agencies. Privacy counsel and litigation strategists should watch as civil liberties concerns rise around these technologies.
- Filed May 28, 2026, lawsuit alleges Boulder Police used 31 Flock Safety cameras unlawfully without warrants.
- Between June 2024 and May 2025, over 4,000 'immigration' searches were logged in the national Flock database.
- Boulder's camera data was accessible to thousands of law enforcement agencies, including U.S. Border Patrol, before national sharing was cut in June 2025.
- Despite privacy scrutiny, Boulder renewed its Flock contract in December 2025 and later opened bids to replace the system in March 2026.
On May 28, 2026, two Boulder residents initiated a class-action lawsuit against the Boulder Police Department, challenging the use of 31 Flock Safety surveillance cameras that track individuals without warrants. The plaintiffs allege this practice violates privacy rights under the Colorado Constitution.<\/p>
Flock Safety's system in Boulder allowed law enforcement nationwide to query license plate data. Records show on January 1, 2025, Boulder's system was included in 5,438 database queries. From June 1, 2024, through May 5, 2025, there were over 4,000 searches citing 'immigration' as the reason. The U.S. Border Patrol conducted over 100 searches of Boulder's data prior to June 2025, when national data sharing was stopped.<\/p>
The surveillance raised concerns of warrantless tracking of drivers and bikers, disproportionately impacting immigrant communities. Plaintiff William Freeman said, "These cameras give the government unchecked superpowers and that’s not something we should tolerate." Attorney Andy McNulty noted that about 99% of surveilled individuals were not involved in any crime.<\/p>
Despite the controversy, Boulder renewed its contract with Flock Safety in December 2025, continuing a roughly $82,500 annual agreement. However, amid public backlash over data-sharing with federal agencies including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Boulder began a bidding process in March 2026 to replace Flock's cameras.<\/p>
Flock Safety maintains it does not contract directly with ICE or share data without explicit permission from local customers, placing local law enforcement decisions at the center of data-sharing controversies.<\/p>
This lawsuit follows a wider pattern of legal challenges against mass surveillance technologies used by police departments nationwide, raising important questions for privacy advocates and legal teams monitoring government surveillance practices.<\/p>
By the numbers:
- 31 — number of Flock Safety cameras used by Boulder Police
- 5,438 — database queries involving Boulder's system on January 1, 2025
- 4,000+ — 'immigration' related searches logged between June 2024 and May 2025
Yes, but: Flock Safety states it does not share data with ICE directly and that local police departments control data access decisions.
What's next: Boulder is in the process of selecting a new license plate reader provider following the March 2026 bidding process amid public concern over surveillance and data privacy.