---
title: "Arrests, a Texas termination and a scrubbed partner test Flock Safety's $8.4 billion mark"
description: "Two Florida deputies were arrested Monday over hundreds of unauthorized plate searches, an Ohio deputy was suspended, and Taylor, Texas unplugged its cameras, while a $1 billion partner scrubbed its ties. The company is still selling, and its exits keep converting to Axon."
publisher: "The Inference"
section: "Policy & Labor"
published: 2026-11-03T20:06:29.730Z
modified: 2026-11-03T20:06:29.730Z
canonical: https://theinference.org/article/arrests-a-texas-termination-and-a-scrubbed-partner-test-flock-safety-s-8-4-billion-mark
language: en
keywords: "Flock Safety, Surveillance, Privacy, Law Enforcement, Axon"
---

# Arrests, a Texas termination and a scrubbed partner test Flock Safety's $8.4 billion mark

> Two Florida deputies were arrested Monday over hundreds of unauthorized plate searches, an Ohio deputy was suspended, and Taylor, Texas unplugged its cameras, while a $1 billion partner scrubbed its ties. The company is still selling, and its exits keep converting to Axon.

[Flock](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/flock-safety) Safety, the Atlanta-based maker of license plate reader cameras serving roughly 6,000 law enforcement agencies across 49 states, had its worst week of accountability yet [3]. On Monday, [two longtime Indian River County, Florida deputies were arrested over hundreds of unauthorized searches](https://veronews.com/2026/11/02/two-irc-deputies-arrested-after-flock-misuse/) in the company's database. Sgt. John Finnegan, a 19-year veteran, admitted to more than 900 improper searches between 2024 and 2025; former deputy Samuel Earman ran more than 200 searches on three women, and ten to twelve women have come forward with stalking allegations against him [3].

Days earlier, on Oct. 30, Ohio's Franklin County [suspended its 2025 "Deputy of the Year" for 30 days after an internal audit found misuse](https://www.newsnationnow.com/us-news/midwest/ohio-deputy-suspended-misusing-flock-data/), and the city of Reynoldsburg has since ended its Flock use entirely [5].

## The customer base moves in both directions

The churn is no longer hypothetical. Taylor, Texas disabled its eight Flock cameras on Highways 79 and 95 and [terminated the contract](https://www.fox7austin.com/news/city-taylor-terminates-contract-flock-safety), announced Nov [4]. 3, with Police Chief Joseph Chacon citing data security concerns and cameras whose "usefulness has not been realized in solving crime" [4]. Verra Mobility, holder of New York City's five-year, $1 billion traffic-enforcement contract, deleted its Flock partnership blurb and told the New York Post it has stopped Flock-involved Florida bids [2].

A Newsweek analysis [counted 149 cities and counties canceling or rejecting Flock contracts between January and August](https://flashmemagazine.com/flock-safetys-7-5-billion-valuation-challenged-by-atlanta-opposition/), more than half in August alone [1], and Reuters reported an 18 percent staff cut, roughly 270 people, in October [1].

*Chart: **Georgia charged 19 in Flock misuse this year; the arrests keep spreading** Bars comparing 19 Georgia law enforcement personnel charged with Flock misuse in 2026, 2 Indian River County deputies arrested on November 2, 2026, and 1 Franklin County, Ohio deputy suspended for 30 days on October 30, 2026.*

*People in law enforcement arrested, charged or suspended over Flock license plate reader misuse, by jurisdiction, most recent counts per the cited sources. Sources: Flashme Magazine citing GBI figures (1), Vero News (3), NewsNation (5). [1][3][5]*

The cameras keep selling, though. [Petersburg, Virginia installed new Flock units the same week](https://www.wtvr.com/news/local-news/new-flock-security-cameras-installed-throughout-petersburg) [6]. Atlanta kept the network under a proposed audit ordinance after police flagged just 79 of 115,578 searches, about 0.07 percent [1]. Minnesota sheriffs still credit the cameras with cracking a murder case and a drive-by shooting [7].

## What the $8.4 billion mark has to survive

The exits do not end plate surveillance; they move it to another vendor. [As The Inference reported on October 25](https://theinference.org/article/cities-cancel-flock-safety-but-the-cameras-stay-up-replacement-deals-flow-to-axon), Los Angeles is replacing its suspended Flock cameras with hundreds of plate readers from [Axon](https://theinference.org/markets/companies/axon) [8], and James City County, Virginia, made the same switch [2]. That pattern is emerging from two jurisdictions, not proven across all 149 exits, but it is the direction of travel [8][2].

Flock raised $275 million from Andreessen Horowitz at a $7.5 billion valuation in March 2025 with annual recurring revenue above $300 million [1], then [closed a $1.2 billion Series I, its latest funding round, in April 2026 near $8.4 billion](https://newsforagent.com/news/2026-10-30/verra-mobility-flock-safety-partnership-removed) [2]. Its defense is guardrails: retention cut from 30 days to seven, mandatory case codes and audits [1].

Whether that holds depends on events now scheduled: Atlanta's ordinance vote, an Albany hearing on plate readers next month [2], and [Minnesota's legislature, where reform failed last session and returns as a priority](https://kstp.com/kstp-news/top-news/some-minnesota-police-departments-hide-locations-of-flock-cameras-citing-security-concerns/) [7]. The number no source carries is net logo retention, the share of customers kept net of losses, against an $8.4 billion private mark [8]. What the record shows is a company keeping most buyers while the misuse cases pile up faster than the audits catch them.

## Takeaway

Flock Safety's misuse scandal widened with arrests, a suspension and a terminated Texas contract this week, yet new cities keep installing its cameras; exits convert to Axon and the $8.4 billion private mark now rests on guardrails the audits have not yet caught up with.

## Sources

1. [Flashme Magazine, Flock Safety's $7.5 billion valuation challenged by Atlanta opposition, 3 November 2026](https://flashmemagazine.com/flock-safetys-7-5-billion-valuation-challenged-by-atlanta-opposition/)
2. [News for Agent, Flock Safety Partner Verra Pulls Ties From Website, 30 October 2026](https://newsforagent.com/news/2026-10-30/verra-mobility-flock-safety-partnership-removed)
3. [Vero News, Two IRC deputies arrested after Flock misuse, 2 November 2026](https://veronews.com/2026/11/02/two-irc-deputies-arrested-after-flock-misuse/)
4. [FOX 7 Austin, City of Taylor terminates contract with Flock Safety, 3 November 2026](https://www.fox7austin.com/news/city-taylor-terminates-contract-flock-safety)
5. [NewsNation, 'Deputy of the Year' suspended for misusing Flock data, 30 October 2026](https://www.newsnationnow.com/us-news/midwest/ohio-deputy-suspended-misusing-flock-data/)
6. [WTVR, New Flock security cameras installed throughout Petersburg, 2 November 2026](https://www.wtvr.com/news/local-news/new-flock-security-cameras-installed-throughout-petersburg)
7. [KSTP 5 Eyewitness News, Some Minnesota police departments hide locations of Flock cameras, citing security concerns, 2 November 2026](https://kstp.com/kstp-news/top-news/some-minnesota-police-departments-hide-locations-of-flock-cameras-citing-security-concerns/)
8. [The Verge, LA is just replacing Flock with a different company's license plate readers, 29 October 2026](https://www.theverge.com/tech/1022195/la-is-just-replacing-flock-with-a-different-companys-license-plate-readers)


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Arrests, a Texas termination and a scrubbed partner test Flock Safety's $8.4 billion mark — The Inference. Canonical: https://theinference.org/article/arrests-a-texas-termination-and-a-scrubbed-partner-test-flock-safety-s-8-4-billion-mark