Oxnard, CA
The Oxnard Police Department announced it was suspending use of its Flock Safety automated license plate readers after determining that out-of-state and federal agencies had been able to query Oxnard data without the department's knowledge or approval. OPD stated it had disabled the National Lookup feature at the start of its deployment in December 2023, but that a vendor-enabled nationwide query capability overrode the department's California-only access setting.
What moved this decision
- Vendor-enabled nationwide query capability overriding the department’s California-only setting
- Two nationwide queries by federal VA Police at Loma Linda in May 2025 that included Oxnard data
- California SB 34 prohibition on sharing ALPR data outside the state
What happened afterwards
OPD documented a concrete unauthorized federal access: in May 2025 the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Police Department at Loma Linda Medical Center ran two nationwide queries that swept in Oxnard data. The department also confirmed the wider pattern - between February and March 2025 multiple California agencies discovered their National Lookup feature had been switched on without their action. This is an agency-head suspension rather than a council vote, and Ventura County agencies tightened their own controls in response rather than terminating.
What we still don’t know
These are the records we would need to describe this decision completely. If you can help obtain them, or already have them, get in touch.
- Camera count and contract value not established
- Whether the suspension was later made permanent or the contract resumed