The City Council’s 6-5 vote Tuesday night to pause the use of Flock cameras in Lowell led to a back and forth between the company and Mayor Erik Gitschier Thursday morning. (Both letters are published in their entirety, below)

In a letter addressed to the Mayor’s office and shared with InsideLowell by Mayor Gitschier, Flock’s Chief Legal Officer Dan Haley asserted that “nothing in that limited license gives flock the right to sell Lowell’s data  – which, again, we do not do.”

In his response to Haley, Gitschier indicated that residents have every right to raise legitimate questions about the company’s business model and wrote “we stand by our statement that Flock generates revenue in connection with data collected through its camera system.”

The use of Automated License Plate Readers (ALPRs) in cities and towns throughout Massachusetts and the United States has become a red-hot political and ideological battle, with more than 30 Bay State communities cancelling, suspending our declining to renew their contracts with Flock over privacy concerns.

Proponents of ALPRs argue they are a valuable tool and assist law enforcement in securing public safety. Earlier this year, a Flock camera in Lowell helped identify the driver in a hit-and-run accident that claimed the life of a 29-year old woman along Pawtucket Boulevard in Lowell.

The morning following the Lowell City Council vote, Police Superintendent Greg Hudon joined the Daily Pulse Podcast for a lengthy discussion about the issue and its use as a public safety took in the Mill City.