A federal judge ruled that using data from Flock cameras to search a car without probable cause may violate the Fourth Amendment.

“The government cannot go snooping through our personal lives and business without an adequate basis to do so,” U.S. District Judge Sara E. Hill wrote in her Thursday decision.

In May 2026, Tulsa County Deputy Sheriff Freddie Alaniz ran a car’s out-of-state license plate through Flock’s system and found out that the driver had traveled from Oklahoma to California, remained in California for one day, and was headed back towards Missouri. He pulled the driver, Melisa Kyle, over and gave her a warning for some traffic violations, but then had his dog sniff her car and found drugs. Kyle was then arrested.

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“That search was not supported by probable cause, and it was done without a warrant in violation of Kyle’s Fourth Amendment rights,” Hill wrote, also calling the camera system “a type of indiscriminate mass surveillance.”

Flock cameras record and log information such as vehicle details, including plate numbers, a car’s make, model and other identifying features.