Banks County sheriff defends withholding Flock records amid Open Records dispute

HOMER, Ga. — Banks County Sheriff Carlton Speed is defending his office’s decision not to release certain records related to the use of Flock Safety license plate-reading technology, saying the records are protected from disclosure under Georgia law.

The statement comes amid an ongoing dispute between the Banks County Sheriff’s Office and a publication over an Open Records request seeking records that could shed light on how employees use and monitor the county’s Flock system.

The dispute centers on whether certain Flock-related audit and administrative records are exempt from disclosure under Georgia’s Open Records Act.

In a Sept. 24 report, the publication said it requested existing Flock audit, user-access, search and accountability records from the Sheriff’s Office. The publication said it specifically sought records concerning system use rather than photographs of motorists, GPS coordinates or unredacted license-plate information.

According to the publication, the Sheriff’s Office initially responded that it did not maintain the requested records and cited O.C.G.A. § 35-1-22, a provision addressing information captured by automated license plate recognition systems.

After the request was challenged, Records Custodian Stephanie Rhodes reportedly said the Sheriff’s Office had consulted with its attorney and maintained its position that the requested information was not subject to disclosure because it was “captured by or derived from Flock.”

Speed subsequently issued a public statement defending the Sheriff’s Office’s handling of Open Records requests.

“We are not hiding anything from the people we serve,” Speed said in the statement.

He said the Sheriff’s Office has consistently worked to respond to records requests and provide records that Georgia law permits it to release.

Speed said the office consulted with legal counsel regarding the Flock request because it involved law-enforcement records and a statutory provision governing information captured by or derived from automated license plate recognition systems.

“After reviewing the request and the applicable law, our legal counsel advised the Sheriff’s Office that the information specifically requested was not subject to public disclosure under the applicable provisions of Georgia law,” Speed said.

He characterized the decision as a legal determination rather than an effort to withhold information from the public.

“There is an important difference between transparency and releasing information that the law protects from disclosure,” Speed said.

The Sheriff’s Office maintains that it is obligated both to release records that are legally subject to disclosure and to protect information that Georgia law prohibits it from releasing.