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Brookline residents have spoken out online and at public hearings to oppose the cameras.
The Brookline Select Board hit pause Tuesday night on a proposed agreement to let police access data from an electronic license plate reader being installed by a private realty company, following intense debate over privacy and ethics.
After hearing objections from residents and board members, the board voted to table the decision.
Board member Paul Warren said he wants to hear directly from Chestnut Hill Realty, the company installing the camera, which is made by Flock Safety.
Chair Bernard Greene said there are too many questions about who could access the data. Chestnut Hill Realty did not send any representatives to the meeting Tuesday.
“I believe that license plate reader technology is a very valuable tool in legitimate law enforcement, but it is a form of invasive surveillance by the government that, in normal times, we probably would accept as a price we pay for law and order,” Greene said.
He continued, “But we’re not living in normal times.”
Greene said the guardrails and guardians protecting rights to free speech and due process are being dismantled in Washington.
“In my opinion, that is the context within which we must look at this (Memorandum of Understanding),” he said.
The issue garnered public attention earlier this month when Chestnut Hill Realty said it was installing a Flock Safety license plate reader along Independence Drive. The company cited a rise in package and retail theft and asked if the police would be interested in accessing the data.
The move alarmed civil liberties advocates, who warned that the technology poses a greater threat than petty crime.
The ACLU of Massachusetts says the cameras, which are marketed as a neighborhood safety tool, enable broad government surveillance by collecting data on people’s movements.
Since then, Brookline residents have spoken out online and during public comment at public hearings to oppose the cameras.
David Butcher, a Brookline resident, questioned what the police having access to free data means, at the Police Commissioners Advisory Committee meeting on Oct. 27.
“It is often said these days that when tech companies offer you a service for free, that’s because the service isn’t the product; you and your data are the product,” he said. “I want to ask you guys if you’re willing to sell us as a product of this company.”
One resident, originally from Russia, explained at the PCAC meeting how cameras in Moscow tracked people’s movements during protests.
Although it’s starting with one camera, he said, “If we open the door, it’ll be hard to close afterwards.”
Residents shared similar sentiments at the Select Board meeting.
On Sept. 29, the PCAC voted 5-0 in favor of the Memorandum of Understanding as long as the police enacted a policy to govern the use of the data.
The Brookline Police Department has submitted a draft policy surrounding the use of the data.
“Anytime new technology is introduced in any field, but particularly in law enforcement, people naturally want to know how it will be used and what safeguards are in place,” Brookline Police Chief Jennifer Paster said at the Select Board meeting.
She said accessing data from the camera would allow the department to react immediately to real-time alerts.
Kristen MacLeod, the public affairs manager for Flock Safety, said it is up to Chesnut Hill Realty to decide with whom to share the data.
The realty company would not have access to the investigative tools shared with law enforcement networks and would not be notified if the camera detects a license plate on a hot list — only participating law enforcement agencies would.
She added, “Having access to the Flock system doesn’t give them carte blanche access to everyone’s cameras.”
Greene noted Flock Safety’s goal of eliminating all crime in America.
“Where has that been accomplished?” he asked. “Where? North Korea.”
Greene voiced concerns over entering any relationship with a company with that mentality and suggested that the board not act on the MOU.
“I don’t think we have enough information or enough time to answer all the questions,” he said.
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