Dutchess County’s 65 Flock Safety cameras will stop taking pictures and collecting data Friday, Sept. 25, even though physically removing the equipment could take up to 30 days, District Attorney Anthony Parisi told the Herald.
The immediate decommissioning comes hours after Parisi and Sheriff Kirk Imperati announced that they were withdrawing their support for the county’s continued use of the surveillance technology following weeks of public opposition.
Parisi said Friday morning that he had instructed Flock Safety to terminate service for cameras operated through the District Attorney’s Office and Sheriff’s Office and remove the equipment.
After a follow-up call with the company, Parisi said Flock confirmed that the cameras would be taken offline later Friday.
“Obviously it will take them time to take down the equipment, but the cameras will be decommissioned today, which means they will go offline today,” Parisi told the Herald. “They will not be taking pictures. They will not be collecting any data as of later today.”
Parisi said the county would terminate service for cameras leased through the District Attorney’s Office and Sheriff’s Office and ask Flock to physically remove the equipment, which could take up to 30 days.
The decision does not automatically apply to Flock cameras controlled by individual cities, towns, villages, or their police departments. Parisi said county officials had informed police chiefs, mayors, and town supervisors of the county’s decision, but that each municipality would have to determine whether to continue using the technology.
“So that will be a decision that they will have to make,” Parisi told the Herald. “I can’t speak for them, but I presume that that they will consider this and make a decision as well.”
The reversal came after residents packed a public forum Wednesday organized by Dutchess County Legislature Public Safety Committee Chairman Eric Alexander, a Democrat who represents Washington. Speakers repeatedly raised concerns about privacy, access to license plate data, information sharing with outside agencies and the ability of local officials to control how the technology is used.
Parisi and Imperati announced Friday that, after discussing what they heard at the forums, they had agreed to withdraw their support for the county’s continued use of Flock.
Parisi said the response demonstrated the purpose of holding the public forums.
“I think the process has worked, right?” Parisi said. “Listen, a community-based project is one where we’re asking for the input of the people.”
The county had previously promoted Flock as part of its public safety infrastructure. Dutchess County’s 2026 budget included $94,500 for Flock, and County Executive Sue Serino said in her State of the County address this year that the county had partnered with Parisi and Imperati to use Flock technology as part of its Real Time Crime Center.
Moments before Parisi confirmed the cameras would be decommissioned Friday, Democratic members of the County Legislature had called for an immediate suspension of data collection and for the cameras to be physically covered while awaiting removal.
Legislator Chris Drago, a Democrat who represents District 19 and serves as vice chairman of the Public Safety Committee, introduced a resolution calling for county Flock cameras to stop collecting data immediately and be covered until they were taken down. The resolution was expected to be introduced during the Legislature’s October committee meetings, according to a news release from legislative Democrats.
“The Dutchess County Sheriff and District Attorney need to act quickly to physically cover the cameras until they come down permanently,” Drago said in the release. “It is a matter of public safety. We don’t know who has access to the data being collected and what they are doing with it. The cameras must be covered.”
Parisi initially said Friday that he could not say whether covering the devices would effectively disable them.
“I honestly don’t know the effectiveness of covering them,” Parisi told the Herald.
After speaking with Flock, however, Parisi said the cameras would instead be decommissioned later Friday and would no longer take pictures or collect data while awaiting physical removal.
The decision marks a rapid reversal for a technology Dutchess County had been expanding in recent years.
As a person who has visited Pine Plains so many times, I am heartened to hear that you are getting rid of the flock cameras!! Your lovely town does not need them and they are so intrusive and unnecessary. The charm of your town will be lost if people feel like they are being “watched by big brother.” Great decision!!!