Richmond council runs out of time on Flock Safety vote

The Richmond City Council meeting ended Tuesday night before members could vote on whether to renew a contract with Flock Safety, a surveillance camera company, as a missing trafficking victim's case cast a shadow over the debate.

The meeting ran out of time before a vote could be taken on the Flock Safety contract extension, which had drawn hours of public comment.

Councilmember Cesar Zepeda made a motion to continue the meeting the following day rather than adjourn, arguing the matter was too important to delay two weeks until the next scheduled meeting.

"My motion is to bring this item back again tomorrow," Zepeda said. "We can just continue it. We don't have to have public comment because we already heard from public comment."

The motion failed 3-4, with Councilmembers Jamelia Brown, Soheila Bana, and Cesar Zepeda voting yes. The meeting was then adjourned.

A missing girl, and a plea

Earlier in the meeting, Police Chief Tim Simmons had told the council about an active case unfolding while they deliberated.

"There is a case that I want to make the council aware of that is occurring even tonight, because it shocks my own conscience," Simmons said. "We've had an investigation going where we were looking for a juvenile human trafficking victim. Her phone was pinging in our city, and she was in a car driving around in our city. If we had this technology up and running right now, we would know exactly where that car is right now. This is a case we are actively working. I have people out in the field in our city right now looking for this young lady."

Councilmember Jamelia Brown expressed frustration in the final 60 seconds of the meeting, making a pointed appeal.

"I would like to highlight that we have a young person who's trafficked, whose phone is pinging in our city, and this is what we chose to do," Brown said from the dais. "I just want that to sit on your good night mood tonight."

In a statement following the meeting, Brown did not hold back.

"I will never forget this vote or the piercing feeling I'm left with tonight," Brown wrote. "A young girl is missing, and I'm shattered knowing we had an opportunity to act and didn't. A young girl is in danger, and studies show in missing persons situations, every minute and every tool matters."

"I stood in support of continuing the meeting because this should have been bigger than politics," Brown added. "My heart is so heavy, and my prayers are with this young person and her family. Richmond must do better when the safety of a human is on the line."

Rallying before the vote

Hours before the council convened, community leaders, merchants, and residents held a press conference at 23rd Street and Nevin Avenue in support of restoring the cameras.

The event, organizers, the Coalition for Community Engagement, the 23rd Street Merchants Association, and Asians Unite, highlighted police data showing vehicle thefts increased 33 percent after the Flock ALPR system was deactivated in late 2025, and noted that dozens of neighboring cities, including San Pablo, Berkeley, Oakland, and San Francisco, use similar technology.

The contract at issue

The Richmond Police Department's contract with Flock Group Inc., which does business as Flock Safety, expired February 28, 2026. Chief Simmons presented the council with two options: approve an extension through December 31, 2026, that includes reinstating the Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) system (Option A), or extend only the CCTV and Drone as a First Responder programs without the ALPR cameras (Option B).

Simmons recommended Option A, citing what he called a clear record of results.

"The Richmond Police Department remains committed to leveraging technology to deter criminal activity, supporting accountability for those who engage in crime within the city, and enhancing public safety for residents and visitors alike, while simultaneously safeguarding civil liberties and the confidentiality of residents' personal information," Simmons said.

From April 2023 through November 2025, the department recorded 274 arrests, recovered 259 stolen vehicles, and assisted in 911 criminal cases using the Flock ALPR system.

The ALPR cameras were shut off in October 2025 after a backend feature was discovered that enabled a "national lookup" capability, creating a data-sharing arrangement with outside agencies that was inconsistent with city policy and California law. Flock Safety has since disabled that feature for all California agencies and blocked out-of-state data sharing.

Community pushback

Opponents of the contract, many representing immigrant rights and civil liberties organizations, urged the council to vote no entirely.

"This is mass surveillance, and systems like this never stay limited to their original purpose," said Hope Dixon, a District 2 resident. "Real safety cannot come from systems that track people's movements and put immigrant families and peaceful protesters at risk."

Mayor Eduardo Martinez, who voted against continuing the meeting the next day, framed the evening's central tension in blunt terms.

"That trust has been broken," Martinez said of Flock Safety. "As Maya Angelou famously said, when someone shows you who they are, believe them the first time."

The council is expected to take up the matter at its next regular meeting. Meanwhile, the Flock ALPR cameras remain offline.

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