The city that fought Flock

It was a long night in Huntington, West Virginia. Mayor Patrick Farrell stood before 10 members of city council wearing a white dress shirt and dark blazer with an American flag pin. His constituents and residents from neighboring towns sat behind him, some with crossed arms and others glaring at him. Just a week prior to the July 13th meeting, Jackie Harper, a 33-year-old woman, was shot and killed in Huntington.

The crime Mayor Farrell had promised to control seemed to have been solved by a breakthrough in the case, as his suspected killer had been found in another state using Flock cameras. These automated license plate reader technology helped track him down. The network had also led to the capture of a suspect in another tragic double killing earlier in the year – a beloved middle school basketball coach and his brother, a city worker.

Mayor Farrell emphasized, "Take that in just this year, and then take it back to all of the cold cases we have," referencing an unsolved case from over 20 years ago where four teenagers were killed in Huntington on their prom night. The murders remain unsolved, and officials still point to a persistent flow of drugs from Detroit as the main issue plaguing the community. The prom night murders still remain unsolved.

Mayor Farrell pleaded with the council to imagine what might have happened had they had this technology. For the next seven hours, dozens of residents from Huntington and surrounding areas voiced their concerns about the potential invasive surveillance that Flock cameras could bring. Some likened it to George Orwell's dystopian novel, 1984, to emphasize their reservations.

City council members expressed worries about the proposed contract's language not being strong enough to protect the city, potentially leading to lawsuits. Some questioned if it was necessary to vote on the technology at such a critical time, given the overwhelming opposition from residents both during the meeting and in private outreach in the days leading up to the vote.

Despite the arguments against the contract, the majority of the council remained unconvinced and approved the resolutions to enter into a business agreement with Flock, voting 6-4. A camera recording the live stream of the council meeting began to shake, and someone off-screen mentioned the taxpayers watching in the upstairs auditorium.

Huntington is a city where people are known to be generous; every interview concluded with a list of recommended restaurants and requests for assistance. The city is spread out with a popular downtown food hall, quaint shopping areas, a city park, and anchored by Marshall University, led by the former CEO of Intuit. Locals describe it as a small town with a big city feel.

State delegate Ryan Browning highlights Huntington as a community ready to roll up their sleeves and work towards a better future. The city has faced its fair share of tragedies, including large floods, a plane crash that killed 37 members of the Marshall football team in the 1970s, and a drug epidemic that has plagued the community.

However, Huntington is also a place characterized by tenacity, with many residents making the best of their situations even during difficult times.