Restore Trust at EPD: Fire Chief Skinner

01/31/2026

That was the most orderly riot i've been apart of. The EPD must give cover to ICE and Federal Agents. Fire Chief Skinner.

12/13/2025

Chief Skinner must resign so our city can restore trust, transparency, and accountability.

OPB reports that federal immigration agencies, including ICE and Border Patrol, have accessed license plate reader data collected by local law enforcement agencies in Washington state.

A University of Washington study found that data from Flock Safety cameras was available to federal agents through shared systems. These tools do not just scan license plates. They capture vehicle details and movements that can be searched and reused well beyond their original purpose.

This is exactly why communities demanded transparency and strict oversight when Flock cameras appeared in Eugene.

Instead, residents were kept in the dark. Camera locations were withheld. A camera was later found running after City Council unanimously ordered a pause. The public learned about it from a community tip, not from EPD leadership.

When surveillance technology can end up in federal hands, especially during heightened enforcement against immigrants and other vulnerable communities, secrecy is not just bad governance. It is dangerous.

Eugene needs police leadership that takes civil liberties seriously and follows Council direction without exception.

Chief Skinner must resign so our city can restore trust, transparency, and accountability.

A new study from the University of Washington’s Center for Human Rights found that U.S. Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement have access Flock license plate data from at least 18 of 31 law enforcement agencies in Washington state.

12/13/2025

It's time for new leadership at EPD.

12/12/2025

This editorial makes it plain: it was the community, not EPD leadership, that forced an end to Flock’s surveillance program.

For months, residents, civil rights advocates, and immigrant justice groups raised the alarm. Leadership dismissed them.
Even as opposition grew, the Chief continued publicly championing the technology.

A Police Chief who ignores clear community concerns and minimizes civil rights implications is not someone who can rebuild trust.

Chief Skinner must resign so Eugene can move forward with transparency and community consent.

Vocal opposition to the deployment of Flock Safety’s automated license plate-reader cameras clearly contributed to the Eugene and Springfield police departments’ Friday night announcements that they had suspended their contracts with the company.

12/11/2025

Chief Skinner should resign.

12/11/2025

Nothing summons Padmé energy quite like discovering a surveillance camera was running during a council declared moratorium.

It's time to for new leadership at the Eugene Police Department.

12/11/2025

Even after a camera stayed on during a pause, after the City was sued for withholding records, after residents showed overwhelming opposition... Chief Skinner is still talking about bringing ALPRs back with a different vendor.

This is not humility.
This is not accountability.
This is not leadership that listens to the people of Eugene.

We need a Police Chief who respects public direction and doesn’t treat the Council’s authority as optional.

It’s time for Chief Skinner to resign.

Eugene Police Chief Chris Skinner said the department will continue looking for automated license plate reading tech to install in the city, despite the agency

12/11/2025

Chief Skinner must resign so Eugene can rebuild public trust.

Flock cameras staying online after shutdown orders isn’t unique to Eugene, it’s happened elsewhere. But our crisis was made worse by an EPD leadership team that failed to verify that Council instructions were actually carried out.

Other departments double-checked. We didn’t. And the public found out only when a resident caught the camera running.

If EPD leadership can’t manage basic oversight of surveillance tools, or be honest with the public about failures, then it’s time for new leadership.

Officials in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Eugene, Oregon, found that some Flock Safety license plate readers were still active after the municipalities asked for services to be terminated.

12/11/2025

Public safety technology belongs to the public. That means the public should know where it’s placed, how it’s used, and what rules govern it. Withholding that information undermines trust and breaks the spirit of open government.

Chief Skinner must resign so Eugene can rebuild public trust.

Today, the ACLU of Oregon and its legal partners, Visible Law and LeDuc Montgomery LLC, filed to sue the City of Eugene for failing to disclose public records pertaining to the city’s operation of Flock Safety cameras.

12/11/2025

Local officials said the camera reboot was an “error,” but this occurred without police notice and was only uncovered because a community member spotted it. That’s not transparency. That’s oversight by accident, not by design.

Chief Skinner must resign so Eugene can rebuild public trust.

Eugene Police Chief Chris Skinner confirmed Tuesday that a Flock camera was turned on after the city ordered them to be shut down in October.

12/11/2025

We are a community effort calling for new leadership at the Eugene Police Department after repeated failures in transparency and accountability related to automated license plate readers (ALPRs). We call on Skinner to resign. If he does not, we call on city council to fire him.

Our concern is simple: public trust was broken.
City Council voted unanimously to pause use of ALPRs, yet a Flock camera was later found active. This happened without public knowledge, without City Council approval, and without any reliable safeguards in place. At the same time, the City refused to release basic public records about camera locations – despite other Oregon cities doing so responsibly. Community groups, journalists, and civil rights advocates had to push for answers that should have been offered freely.

The Police Chief is responsible for ensuring accurate information is shared with the public and that Council directives are carried out without exception. Instead, residents learned about an active camera from a community tip, not from EPD. This pattern has eroded trust and undermined democratic oversight.

We believe restoring confidence in public safety requires a change in leadership.

Our goal is to see new leadership at EPD. Skinner, please submit your resignation!