Lexington mayor names co-chairs of independent panel to review Lexington's Flock camera program

LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX NEWS) — Mayor Linda Gorton has appointed two community leaders to co-chair an independent panel that will review Lexington's use of automated license plate reader technology and determine whether it meets best practices and community expectations.

Gorton announced Tuesday that Allison Connelly, an attorney, University of Kentucky College of Law professor emeritus and former chair of the city's Ethics Commission, and Timothy Johnson, president and CEO of the Greater Clark Foundation and former president of United Way of the Bluegrass, will lead the external review.

The panel will examine the city's automated license plate reader program and evaluate whether improvements are needed, whether a different vendor should be considered or whether other changes should be made.

Gorton said the review is not focused on the Lexington Police Department and emphasized that city officials are not alleging any wrongdoing by police.

She said Police Chief Lawrence Weathers supports the review and noted that the city developed policies governing the use of license plate readers with input from the local Human Rights Commission, NAACP and ACLU.

City leaders have already discussed ways to strengthen oversight of the technology in response to public concerns, Gorton said. She added that the review is intended to address what she described as misunderstandings about how the system operates.

According to city officials, Lexington's license plate readers capture a single image of a license plate, a basic vehicle description, and the date, time and GPS location of the reader. The system does not record video, use facial recognition technology or identify vehicle occupants. Officials also said the readers cannot be used for traffic enforcement.

Lexington currently has 125 license plate readers installed in public locations. The city publishes the locations of the devices on its website.

Supporters of the technology say it has helped police investigate crimes and locate missing people. Since March 2022, city officials said license plate readers have assisted in locating 32 missing persons, recovering more than $5.5 million worth of stolen vehicles, seizing 166 weapons and charging 821 people with various crimes.

"Because they have been effective at helping our police fight crime, license plate readers have considerable support among members of the public," Gorton said. "However, other citizens have raised good questions, which should be answered."

Gorton said she expects to appoint the remaining members of the review panel later this month.

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