{"meta":{"exportedAt":"2026-10-04T08:56:40.758Z","formatVersion":2,"selection":{"q":"gbi","system":"","harm":"","context":"","country":"","role":"","relation":"contextual","evidence":"","year":"2024","response":"","severity":"","verification":"","view":"incidents","sort":"added"},"totalIncidents":2,"coverage":{"cases":2,"countries":1,"languages":1,"unknownLocation":0,"locationPending":0,"unknownLanguage":0,"unknownDate":0,"lawsuits":0,"regulatory":0,"minors":0,"coreRelations":0,"contextualRelations":2,"mixedRelations":0,"unknownRelations":0,"relationPending":0,"relationUnknown":0},"countingNote":"Distinct public cases in this selection. People counts apply within individual cases only; cross-case person overlap has not been resolved. No population incidence estimate.","affectedCountNote":"Interpret person counts with affectedCountStatus and the reported effects. Unquantified zeros are placeholders, not a measured zero.","source":"AI incidents","publisher":"NOPE","url":"https://nope.net/incidents","license":"CC BY 4.0"},"incidents":[{"id":"2024-dallas-georgia-police-911-director-flock-alpr-searches-estranged-husband-and-partner-arrested","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'searched more than 2,500 times for cars belonging to her estranged husband and his new girlfriend'; 'almost every day from July 2024 to May 2025'; 'as many as 39 times in one day, sometimes just seconds apart'; 'More than half her searches of those cars occurred between 7 p.m. and 3 a.m.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'had accessed the system up to 1,200 times for non-law enforcement purposes, with some searches allegedly involving her former spouse'","relation":"context","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"USA TODAY's analysis of Flock audit logs found that the director used Flock to look up the license plates of her estranged husband and his new girlfriend almost every day from July 2024 to May 2025, more than 2,500 times in all and as many as 39 times in one day, with more than half of the searches made between 7 p.m. and 3 a.m.","causal_attribution":"USA TODAY's own analysis of audit logs. The GBI figure relayed from 11Alive (up to 1,200 accesses) differs; the GBI release itself gives no count. Not independently confirmed."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'repeatedly showed up unannounced at the restaurants where they ate'; 'even at the rural, 100-acre Alabama property they regularly visit'; 'I think she wanted us to know she was there.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The husband and his girlfriend told USA TODAY that in the months after the couple separated, the director repeatedly showed up unannounced at restaurants where they ate, at the hospital where the girlfriend works and at a rural Alabama property they regularly visit.","causal_attribution":"The couple's own account to USA TODAY; the director did not respond. The link between the searches and the appearances is the couple's inference."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'said she fears for her safety'; 'She filed a petition for a restraining order against'; 'on Aug. 20, court records show, citing her frequent Flock searches'; 'It’s an invasion of privacy'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The girlfriend said she fears for her safety and, according to court records, filed a petition for a restraining order against the director on 20 August 2026, citing her frequent Flock searches; the husband called the searches an invasion of privacy.","causal_attribution":"The couple's statements and USA TODAY's reading of court records, which were not inspected."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'requested the GBI to investigate allegations of misuse of the Dallas Police Department Flock Safety System'; 'accessed the Flock Safety System between 2024 and 2025 for non-law enforcement purposes'; 'with two misdemeanor counts of Misuse of a License Plate Reader System'; 'was booked into the Paulding County Jail'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'on two misdemeanor counts of misusing a license plate reader'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"On 7 July 2026 the Dallas Police Department asked the GBI to investigate allegations of misuse of its Flock Safety system; preliminary information indicated that the 911 director had accessed the system between 2024 and 2025 for non-law enforcement purposes. The GBI arrested her on 12 August 2026 on two misdemeanor counts of misuse of a license plate reader system and booked her into the Paulding County Jail.","causal_attribution":"The GBI's release; USA TODAY reports the same arrest and charges. Charges are allegations."},{"id":"c5","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'USA TODAY contacted the Dallas Police Department about'; 'asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to investigate her the next day'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'On July 7, 2026, the Dallas Police Department requested the GBI'","relation":"context","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"USA TODAY contacted the Dallas Police Department about the director's Flock activity on 6 July 2026, and the department asked the GBI to investigate her the next day.","causal_attribution":"USA TODAY's account of its own inquiry; the GBI release gives the 7 July request date."}],"effects":[{"label":"the couple's cars searched more than 2,500 times in the police Flock system by the husband's estranged wife, a police 911 director","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"the couple say she repeatedly showed up unannounced where they were","claim_id":"c2","direction":"negative"},{"label":"the girlfriend fears for her safety and has petitioned for a restraining order","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/08/28/flock-camera-investigation-police-arrested-fired-surveillance/91383586007/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-04 from the eu.usatoday.com edition of the same article (the www host answered 402). USA TODAY's own analysis of Flock audit logs, interviews with the husband and his girlfriend, court records and the director's personnel file.","independence_group":"usat-flock-investigation"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://gbi.georgia.gov/press-releases/2026-08-12/gbi-arrests-former-911-director-paulding-county-misuse-license-plate","kind":"official_statement","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-04 (live). The GBI's arrest release; it names the charges and the department's request but not the people searched.","independence_group":"gbi-2026-08-12"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.yahoo.com/news/us/articles/another-person-caught-using-flock-192101856.html","kind":"news_relay","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read in English on 2026-10-04 (live; Mandatory on Yahoo News, 17 August 2026). Relays 11Alive's report of the GBI's account (11Alive answered 403 and was not read). The page's automated key-takeaways box was not used.","independence_group":"gbi-2026-08-12"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["institutional_use"],"contexts":["privacy","justice","relationships"],"unknowns":["The exact number of searches (USA TODAY: more than 2,500; the GBI via 11Alive: up to 1,200).","Whether the restraining order was granted.","Whether the director has been charged in court and any outcome."],"geography":{"basis":"The director worked for the Dallas Police Department in Paulding County, Georgia, whose Flock system she searched; the GBI arrested her and booked her into the Paulding County Jail (GBI release). The couple's residence is not stated; affected_person_countries US rests on their cars being searched in the Georgia department's system and on the places named in USA TODAY (restaurants, a hospital and an Alabama property). The case is in Georgia.","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":["US"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published under the 2026-09-15 charter as an institutional privacy and safety case, consistent with the held Flock officer-misuse rows: the GBI arrested a police 911 director for misusing the department's Flock license-plate-reader system, and USA TODAY's analysis and interviews describe the two people whose cars she searched and the effects they report. The automated readers generated the plate-read records; the misuse is recorded as a human act. The director and the couple are not named here.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-04"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The GBI says the director accessed the Dallas Police Department's Flock Safety system for non-law enforcement purposes, and USA TODAY's analysis of Flock audit logs found her repeated searches of the couple's license plates. USA TODAY describes the Flock system as photographing passing cars and uploading the plate number, make, model, color and other characteristics to an online database. The plate-read records about the couple's cars were the system's output; the searches are recorded as the director's own acts. The sources do not describe the readers as AI.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["made_claim_about"]},"name":"Dallas, Georgia: a police department's 911 director is accused of using its Flock license-plate-reader system to track her estranged husband and his new partner almost daily from July 2024 to May 2025; the GBI arrested her in August 2026","summary":"The Georgia Bureau of Investigation arrested the former 911 director of the Dallas Police Department in Paulding County, Georgia, on 12 August 2026 on two misdemeanor counts of misuse of a license plate reader system, after the department asked it on 7 July to investigate misuse of the department's Flock Safety system between 2024 and 2025. A USA TODAY analysis of Flock audit logs found that she had searched more than 2,500 times for the cars of her estranged husband and his new girlfriend, almost every day from July 2024 to May 2025 and as many as 39 times in one day. The couple told USA TODAY that in the months after the separation she repeatedly showed up unannounced at restaurants where they ate, at the hospital where the girlfriend works and at a rural Alabama property they visit. The girlfriend said she fears for her safety and, according to court records, filed a petition for a restraining order on 20 August citing the Flock searches. USA TODAY had contacted the department about the searches on 6 July. The charges are allegations.","incidentDate":"2024-07-01","incidentEndDate":"2025-05-01","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-08-12","aiSystem":"Flock Safety automated license-plate-reader system of the Dallas (Georgia) Police Department, searched by its 911 director (GBI release; USA TODAY analysis of Flock audit logs)","aiProduct":"Flock Safety license plate readers","aiCompany":"Flock Safety","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"According to USA TODAY's analysis of Flock audit logs, the couple's cars were searched more than 2,500 times over about ten months by the husband's estranged wife, a police 911 director; they say she repeatedly appeared where they were, and the girlfriend says she fears for her safety and has sought a restraining order. The director is charged with misuse of a license plate reader system.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":2,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"Two people, the director's estranged husband and his new girlfriend, whose cars USA TODAY's analysis found she searched and who described the effects to USA TODAY. Exact 2.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-GA","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"criminal_charges","outcomeStatus":"pending","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2026/08/28/flock-camera-investigation-police-arrested-fired-surveillance/91383586007/","primarySourceLabel":"USA TODAY, 28 August 2026: Our Flock camera investigation sparks police firings, arrests","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-04T03:30:13.936939+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-04T03:30:13.936939+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["flock","alpr","license-plate-reader","police-misuse","estranged-spouse","georgia","dallas-georgia","paulding-county","gbi","usa-today-investigation","restraining-order","made-claim-about"]},{"id":"2024-coffee-county-georgia-former-deputy-flock-alpr-tracked-woman-stalking-indictment","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'knowingly requested, used, and obtained captured license plate data for purposes outside of law enforcement'; 'followed, tracked, and surveilled a woman across multiple locations in Coffee County without her consent'; 'The indictment alleges several of the incidents happened between April 10, 2024, and May 1, 2024.'; 'Flock camera and tag reader system'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The indictment, as reported from court documents, alleges a former Coffee County deputy obtained captured license plate data for purposes including stalking, used the sheriff's office Flock camera and tag reader system in a personal and unlawful manner, and followed, tracked and surveilled a woman across multiple locations in Coffee County without her consent to harass and intimidate her; several incidents are alleged between 10 April and 1 May 2024.","causal_attribution":"Indictment allegations as reported; no plea or court ruling was found."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'Flock Law Enforcement Camera System, Tag Reader System and the Georgia Crime Information Center (GCIC) database for personal reasons rather than legitimate law enforcement purposes.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'One count of Prohibited Use of Captured License Plate Data'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'one count of prohibited use of captured license plate data and one count of stalking.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"Investigators allege the former deputy used the sheriff's office Flock Law Enforcement Camera System, its tag reader system and the Georgia Crime Information Center (GCIC) database for personal reasons rather than law-enforcement purposes; he is charged with four counts of violation of oath, two counts of computer invasion of privacy, one count of prohibited use of captured license plate data and one count of stalking.","causal_attribution":"Investigators' allegations and the charges as announced; the charges have not been tried."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'This is terrifying and humiliating'; 'after waiting two years for the investigation to be completed, I just want to move forward.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The woman, speaking to WALB on condition of anonymity, said the experience was terrifying and humiliating and that she had waited two years for the investigation to be completed.","causal_attribution":"The woman's own account to WALB; she attributes the experience to the deputy's conduct as a whole, which includes but is not limited to the license-plate searches."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'began after a woman reported allegations of stalking and other misconduct nearly two years ago.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'Former Sheriff Doyle Wooten reportedly requested the GBI to independently investigate the public allegations in 2024.'; 'was terminated from his position when that investigation began'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'released on bond on May 5. He is scheduled to appear for arraignment on May 27 in Coffee County Superior Court.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The investigation began after a woman reported stalking allegations about two years before the May 2026 arrest; the then-sheriff asked the GBI to investigate in 2024, and the deputy was fired when the investigation began. He was arrested and released on bond on 5 May 2026, with arraignment set for 27 May 2026.","causal_attribution":"Sheriff's office statements and jail and court records as reported."}],"effects":[{"label":"a woman was allegedly followed, tracked and surveilled across the county by a sheriff's deputy using captured license-plate data from the office's Flock camera system","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"},{"label":"the woman told a local station the experience was terrifying and humiliating","claim_id":"c3","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.walb.com/2026/05/08/former-coffee-co-deputy-accused-tracking-woman-through-law-enforcement-systems/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-10-04 (WALB, 8 May 2026). Reports the indictment from court documents and carries the woman's written statements to WALB, given on condition of anonymity.","independence_group":"coffee-county-indictment-ccso"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://www.walb.com/2026/05/05/former-coffee-county-deputy-arrested-invasion-privacy-charges-following-gbi-investigation/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-10-04 (WALB, 5 May 2026). Relays the Coffee County Sheriff's Office announcement of the arrest and the charges.","independence_group":"coffee-county-indictment-ccso"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.fox5atlanta.com/news/coffee-county-deputy-arrested-alleged-stalking-misuse-databases","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-10-04 (FOX 5 Atlanta, 11 May 2026). States that its information came from the Coffee County Sheriff's Office press release; same chain as WALB.","independence_group":"coffee-county-indictment-ccso"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["institutional_use"],"contexts":["privacy","justice"],"unknowns":["How many Flock or tag-reader searches the deputy is accused of running and what they showed.","The woman's relationship to the deputy, if any.","The outcome of the criminal case after the scheduled 27 May 2026 arraignment."],"geography":{"basis":"The stalking count alleges the woman was tracked across multiple locations in Coffee County, Georgia, and the case is in Coffee County Superior Court (WALB).","court_countries":["US"],"event_countries":["US"],"affected_person_countries":["US"]},"publication":{"basis":"Published as a contextual case (made_claim_about) consistent with earlier officer-misuse rows for Flock license-plate readers: a Coffee County grand jury indictment, reported from court documents by WALB and confirmed in the sheriff's office release relayed by WALB and FOX 5 Atlanta, charges a former deputy with prohibited use of captured license plate data and with stalking a woman he allegedly tracked across the county. The charges are allegations. The deputy and the woman are not named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-04"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The indictment, as reported by WALB from court documents, alleges the former deputy used the Coffee County Sheriff's Office Flock Law Enforcement Camera System and tag reader system in a personal and unlawful manner and obtained captured license plate data for purposes including stalking; one count charges prohibited use of captured license plate data (WALB, FOX 5 Atlanta). The automated readers produced the plate records; the searches and their purpose are recorded as the deputy's own acts. He is also accused of using the GCIC database, which is not treated as AI. The sources do not describe the readers as AI.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["made_claim_about"]},"name":"Coffee County, Georgia: a former sheriff's deputy is indicted on stalking and license-plate-data charges, accused of using the sheriff's office Flock camera and tag-reader systems to track a woman across the county in 2024; she says the experience was terrifying and humiliating","summary":"A former Coffee County Sheriff's Office deputy was arrested on 5 May 2026 on an eight-count Coffee County grand jury indictment after a Georgia Bureau of Investigation inquiry, according to WALB and FOX 5 Atlanta. The charges include one count of prohibited use of captured license plate data and one count of stalking. Investigators allege he used the sheriff's office Flock Law Enforcement Camera System, its tag reader system and the state GCIC database for personal reasons. The indictment, as reported by WALB from court documents, alleges he obtained captured license plate data for purposes including stalking and that he followed, tracked and surveilled a woman across multiple locations in Coffee County without her consent to harass and intimidate her; several incidents are alleged between 10 April and 1 May 2024. The woman, who asked WALB not to name her, said the experience was terrifying and humiliating and that she had waited two years for the investigation. The then-sheriff asked the GBI to investigate in 2024, and the deputy was fired when the inquiry began. He was released on bond on 5 May 2026 and was due for arraignment on 27 May.","incidentDate":"2024-04-01","incidentEndDate":"2024-05-01","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"month","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-05-05","aiSystem":"Flock Safety automated license-plate-reader camera system and a tag reader system used by the Coffee County Sheriff's Office, which the former deputy is accused of using to track a woman","aiProduct":"Flock Safety license plate readers","aiCompany":"Flock Safety","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"A Coffee County indictment, as reported by WALB, alleges a former deputy used the sheriff's office Flock camera and tag-reader systems to obtain license-plate data and followed, tracked and surveilled a woman across the county to harass and intimidate her; the woman told WALB the experience was terrifying and humiliating. The charges are pending.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, the woman the stalking count alleges was followed, tracked and surveilled, who spoke to WALB anonymously (WALB, 8 May 2026). Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-GA","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"criminal_charges","outcomeStatus":"pending","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.walb.com/2026/05/08/former-coffee-co-deputy-accused-tracking-woman-through-law-enforcement-systems/","primarySourceLabel":"WALB, 8 May 2026: Alleged victim speaks out after former Coffee Co. deputy accused of tracking her is released on bond","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-04T03:25:30.914833+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-04T03:25:30.914833+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["flock","alpr","license-plate-reader","police-misuse","stalking","georgia","coffee-county","gbi","criminal-charges","made-claim-about"]}]}