Virginia Air Force engineer allegedly cut down 13 Flock cameras, argues they’re unconstitutional: ‘an unhealthy surveillance state’

A Virginia U.S. Air Force mechanic and engineer is facing multiple criminal charges. This includes 13 felony counts, all for waging a one-man war against Flock cameras that he believes are unconstitutional.

Flock cameras are automated license plate reader systems produced by Atlanta-based company Flock Safety. They use AI to record details about every car that passes them, with the information fed to the police to aid in investigations.

Their critics contend they’re a breach of privacy and an arm of a growing surveillance state. And so, in Suffolk, Virginia, cops discovered that someone was vandalizing their cameras. As per Military.com it began with them simply being turned away from the road, but escalated to poles holding them being cut down, and the cameras being tossed off a bridge onto the interstate below.

“I appreciate my privacy”

After a six-month investigation, Suffolk Police arrested 41-year-old Jeffrey Sovern. Ironically, he was identified using the very type of camera he was crusading against. Sovern now faces 13 felony counts of destruction of property, six counts of petit larceny, and six counts of possession of burglary tools. He has pleaded not guilty.

Now he’s become a cause-celebre to privacy activists, who have so far donated more than $37,000 to his legal defense, as he argues that the cameras are a violation of his rights.

Suffolk Police Det. Zach Hyman has testified that during police interviews, Sovern repeatedly argued that the cameras are “unconstitutional and a violation of his and others’ Fourth Amendment rights.” Sovern goes on to explain further on his GoFundMe, saying, “I appreciate my privacy. I appreciate everyone’s right to privacy, enshrined in the Fourth Amendment.” On a similar note, that constitutional right to free speech was affirmed this week as a court ruled that Ron DeSantis’ “Stop Woke Act” trampled on the Fourth Amendment.

That was echoed in comments to Straight Arrow News, in which Sovern accused Flock of being part of “an unhealthy surveillance state.” Another person who’s defending the constitution is Zohran Mamdani, who was quizzed about presidential ambitions despite being born in Uganda, but said he thinks it “looks good just the way it is”.

Sovern’s case is ongoing, but there has been a wave of attacks on Flock cameras across the country as the tech has become a hot-button issue. Legal cases are pending to decide whether this surveillance system is constitutional or not, and on June 29, the Supreme Court ruled that obtaining a person’s cellphone location data qualifies as a search under the Fourth Amendment and that the limits of location surveillance must be reconsidered.

Flock has firmly defended its cameras, saying on their site:

“Our mission is to eliminate crime. Full stop. We do so within a principled framework that protects privacy and promotes objectivity. At Flock Safety, we believe it is imperative that we work together with our communities, openly and transparently, with the best people, technological products, and thoughtful policies. We also believe that ethical public safety should be an apolitical position and we genuinely strive to bring communities together to pursue exactly this.”

As of writing Sovern’s case has no trial date set, but his charges were certified to the circuit court. The case continues.