{"meta":{"exportedAt":"2026-10-03T07:12:37.563Z","formatVersion":2,"selection":{"q":"new-bedford","system":"","harm":"","context":"","country":"","role":"","relation":"","evidence":"","year":"","response":"","severity":"","verification":"","view":"incidents","sort":"added"},"totalIncidents":1,"coverage":{"cases":1,"countries":1,"languages":1,"unknownLocation":0,"locationPending":0,"unknownLanguage":0,"unknownDate":1,"lawsuits":0,"regulatory":0,"minors":0,"coreRelations":0,"contextualRelations":1,"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":"2026-new-bedford-massachusetts-police-officer-flock-alpr-ex-girlfriend-plate-searches-protective-order","caseFacts":{"claims":[{"id":"c1","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'notified her that her license plate had been searched for in their Flock database a'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'was tracking her vehicle using Flock Safety cameras and it made her feel like she was being followed.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'there is an open IA investigation of her running my license plate through Flock to follow me,'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The ex-girlfriend says the New Bedford Police Department told her that her license plate had been searched in its Flock database a concerning number of times, and testified that police told her the officer was tracking her vehicle using Flock cameras and that it made her feel she was being followed.","causal_attribution":"The ex-girlfriend's testimony and affidavit as reported; the officer disputes the purpose of the searches."},{"id":"c2","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'had been in a relationship for about two and a half years before she ended it in early April.'; 'received endless calls and text messages'; 'showed up to her home unannounced, refusing to leave when asked.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'showed up to her home unannounced while on duty in her police cruiser.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"}],"assertion":"In her affidavit the ex-girlfriend says that after she ended their relationship in early April 2026 she received endless calls and text messages, and that the officer showed up at her home unannounced, including once on duty in a cruiser when the officer would not let her leave.","causal_attribution":"Allegations in the affidavit and at the hearing; not adjudicated beyond the order."},{"id":"c3","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'raised concerns about potential unauthorized use of the system,'; 'personal connection between the officer and an individual associated with a license plate that had been searched.'; 'The department suspended its use of the automated license plate readers on Aug. 11'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"The police chief says a Flock audit begun on 31 July 2026 identified an officer whose activity raised concerns about potential unauthorized use, and a personal connection between the officer and a person associated with a searched plate; the officer was served an emergency restraining order on 10 August and placed on administrative leave, and the department suspended its Flock cameras on 11 August.","causal_attribution":"Police chief's statement as reported by Boston.com."},{"id":"c4","status":"reported","evidence":[{"locator":"'was served with a six-month abuse prevention order in court Thursday in relation to her ex-girlfriend'; 'testified in court, however, that the ex’s license plate was the subject of a legitimate drug investigation in the city, leading to the database searches.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'was not a target of that investigation, your honor. Her car was a target'; 'based on another operator of that car,'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"},{"locator":"'A protective order against'; 'was extended for six months during a hearing last Thursday.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"}],"assertion":"At a hearing in New Bedford District Court on 13 August 2026 the officer was served with a six-month abuse prevention order, which Boston.com describes as the extension of a protective order after an emergency restraining order served on 10 August; the officer testified that the plate was the subject of a legitimate drug investigation, and the officer's attorney said the car was the target because of another operator.","causal_attribution":"Court hearing as reported; the internal investigation has not concluded."},{"id":"c5","status":"disputed","evidence":[{"locator":"'acknowledged that she had used Flock to run her ex-girlfriend'; 'maintained that the searches were for professional reasons.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s1"},{"locator":"'was the subject of a legitimate drug investigation in the city, leading to the database searches.'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s2"},{"locator":"'was tracking her vehicle using Flock Safety cameras'","relation":"supports","source_id":"s3"}],"assertion":"The purpose of the officer's Flock searches of the ex-girlfriend's plate is disputed: she says police told her the officer was tracking her vehicle, while the officer acknowledged at the hearing that she had used Flock to run the plate but said the searches were for professional reasons, namely a legitimate drug investigation involving another operator of the car.","causal_attribution":"Competing accounts at the 13 August hearing; the internal investigation has not concluded."}],"effects":[{"label":"a woman says a police officer she had dated searched her plate in the police license-plate-reader system and harassed her after their break-up, and that it made her feel followed","claim_id":"c1","direction":"negative"}],"sources":[{"id":"s1","url":"https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2026/08/19/new-bedford-police-release-more-details-on-flock-cameras-amid-investigation-of-officer-accused-of-tracking-ex-girlfriend/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-10-03 (Boston.com, 19 August 2026). Reports the affidavit filed in New Bedford District Court, which Boston.com obtained, and the police chief's statement.","independence_group":"new-bedford-affidavit-and-chief"},{"id":"s2","url":"https://turnto10.com/news/local/new-bedford-officer-accused-of-using-flock-camera-to-track-ex-girlfriend-to-face-judge-aug-13-2026","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-10-03 (WJAR NBC 10, 13 August 2026). Reports the 13 August court hearing.","independence_group":"new-bedford-court-hearing"},{"id":"s3","url":"https://www.nbcboston.com/news/local/new-bedford-police-flock-camera-hearing/3997454/","kind":"news_report","access":"read","language":"en","translation_note":"Read live on 2026-10-03 (NBC Boston, 13 August 2026). Reports the same hearing; treated as the same chain as WJAR.","independence_group":"new-bedford-court-hearing"}],"version":1,"ai_roles":["institutional_use"],"contexts":["privacy","justice","relationships"],"unknowns":["When and how many times the plate was searched, and what the searches returned.","Whether the searches were connected to an investigation, as the officer says, or were personal.","The outcome of the internal investigation, the wider audit and any criminal referral."],"geography":{"basis":"The New Bedford Police Department and its Flock system are in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and the abuse prevention order was issued in New Bedford District Court (WJAR, NBC Boston, Boston.com). Her affidavit says the officer came to her home while on duty in a police cruiser (Boston.com, WJAR), which places her residence in the US.","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 woman says a police officer she had dated searched her plate in the department's Flock system and harassed her after their break-up; the department's audit flagged the officer and a court extended an abuse prevention order. The searches' purpose is disputed and the investigation is open. The officer and the woman are not named.","reviewed_on":"2026-10-03"},"ai_involvement":{"basis":"The ex-girlfriend says the New Bedford Police Department told her that her plate had been searched in its Flock database a concerning number of times (WJAR) and that the officer was tracking her vehicle using Flock cameras (NBC Boston); the police chief says a Flock audit identified a personal connection between the officer and a person associated with a searched plate (Boston.com). The officer acknowledged running the plate but says the searches were for a drug investigation. The automated readers generated the vehicle-location records about her car; the searches are recorded as the officer's acts.","status":"reported"},"person_relations":["made_claim_about"]},"name":"New Bedford, Massachusetts: a police officer is under internal investigation after a Flock audit raised concerns about unauthorized use and a personal connection to a searched plate; the officer's ex-girlfriend, who says she was harassed after their break-up and that police told her that her plate had been searched a concerning number of times, had an abuse prevention order extended for six months on 13 August 2026; the officer says the searches were for a drug investigation, and the department paused its Flock cameras","summary":"The New Bedford Police Department in Massachusetts placed an officer on administrative leave in August 2026 after an audit of its Flock license-plate-reader system, begun on 31 July, flagged activity that raised concerns about unauthorized use and found a personal connection between the officer and a person associated with a license plate that had been searched. The officer's former girlfriend, who ended their relationship in early April 2026, says in an affidavit reported by Boston.com that she then received endless calls and messages and that the officer showed up at her home unannounced, once while on duty in a cruiser. WJAR reports that she alleged the department had told her that her plate had been searched in its Flock database a concerning number of times, and NBC Boston reports her testimony that police told her the officer was tracking her vehicle and that this made her feel she was being followed. On 13 August New Bedford District Court extended an abuse prevention order against the officer for six months. The officer testified that the searches were for a legitimate drug investigation involving another driver of the car. The department suspended its use of Flock on 11 August while it reviews the system; its internal investigation is open and no criminal charge has been reported.","incidentKind":"bounded_series","incidentDatePrecision":"unknown","exposurePattern":"unknown","reportedDate":"2026-08-13","aiSystem":"Flock Safety automated license-plate-reader system used by the New Bedford Police Department since 2024, in which the officer is accused of searching the ex-girlfriend's license plate","aiProduct":"Flock Safety license plate readers","aiCompany":"Flock Safety","severity":"medium","verificationStatus":"credible","harmCategories":[],"harmOutcomes":["exploitation_or_abuse","psychological_distress"],"harmOutcomeSummary":"A woman says a police officer she had dated harassed her after their break-up and that the department told her the officer had searched her plate in its Flock license-plate-reader system a concerning number of times, which made her feel followed (court hearing and affidavit as reported by WJAR, NBC Boston and Boston.com); a court extended an abuse prevention order, and the officer says the searches were for a drug investigation.","frameworkFacets":[],"causationStatus":"alleged","participantUsersAffectedMin":0,"otherPeopleHarmedMin":1,"affectedCountStatus":"exact","affectedCountEvidence":"One person, the officer's former girlfriend, whose plate searches and harassment are described in her affidavit and testimony (Boston.com, WJAR, NBC Boston). Exact 1.","victimAgeRange":"adult","jurisdiction":"US-MA","platformType":"other","outcomeType":"internal_action","outcomeStatus":"ongoing","primarySourceUrl":"https://www.boston.com/news/local-news/2026/08/19/new-bedford-police-release-more-details-on-flock-cameras-amid-investigation-of-officer-accused-of-tracking-ex-girlfriend/","primarySourceLabel":"Boston.com, 19 August 2026: New Bedford police release more details on Flock amid investigation of officer accused of tracking ex-girlfriend","firstPublishedAt":"2026-10-03T03:24:21.688309+00:00","updatedAt":"2026-10-03T03:24:21.688309+00:00","scopeVersion":"facts-v3","tags":["flock","alpr","license-plate-reader","police-misuse","stalking","massachusetts","new-bedford","protective-order","made-claim-about"]}]}