08/21/2026
I had planned to stay out of the debate and discussion concerning license plate readers (e.g. Flock) until after the election in November. However, I have seen enough misinformation to suggest that I need to at least offer some additional legal background in order to assist our community in making more informed decisions about the value of license plate readers versus their alleged threats to our liberties. I will often error on the side of providing too much information, and will therefore apologize in advance for the length of some of these posts. But over the next two weeks I would like to offer a discussion about the history of the 4th amendment, the lack of any express language in the US Constitution granting an express right to privacy, and the reasons why I think license plate readers are an invaluable tool to help ensure the safety of our community. The beauty of America is that we are all free to disagree with each other. I hope only that we can focus on the facts of what LPR's actually are, and are not, as opposed to the slippery slope arguments of what they might become in the future. I approach this discussion having spent 30 years of my legal career protecting the Constitutional rights of my clients. As your next Prosecutor, I am committed to that same protection of rights for Marshall County. But I am in favor of license plate reader technology and will explain my reasoning over the next two weeks.