Racine County: Records show Flock misuse and discipline

But let's begin with our big story of five. A flock of problems. There's been another case of law enforcement improperly using flock cameras. It raises the question of how different agencies deal with that abuse. Our Racine Kenosha County reporter Ben Hanson is more on a case of misuse in the Racine County Sheriff's Department and the discipline that came with that case, Ben. Yeah, today I got some open records back from the Racine County Sheriff's Office that showed how they dealt with a case of misuse. The investigator in this instance who violated policy got 10 days of 10 days of suspension without pay. According to these records in October of last year, this investigator used the flock camera system to track his partner's ex boyfriend because he was allegedly stalking the partner. An administrative investigation was done and he received that 10 day suspension without pay. At that time, they also informally directed the case to the Racine County D. A. Patricia Hanson. Hanson let that case go at that time because she didn't find any criminal action with the public's increase of interest in flat cameras. They recent the case to the D. A. D. A. In May and again it was dismissed. We're not naming the investigator in the Racine County Sheriff's Office case because he was never criminally charged. I talked to Lieutenant Michael Lowell with the sheriff's office earlier today and he said they have put together new guardrails for flat camera use. Only supervisors and investigators can make plot system searches. The office audits the system now and they're having an office wide training. I think the guardrails are appropriately are appropriate and will serve to manage this important technology that we use on a consistent basis to solve crime. So flock is a very, very important crime fighting tool that law enforcement uses. We're not trying away from it, but just like any piece of equipment, any ounce of authority stuff can things can be abused and we put guardrails in place to try to limit or or minimize that to the fact that it won't happen at all around this time. The same time this flat camera misuse was happening in the Racine Sheriff's Office. It was also happening in the Racine Police Department. No criminal charges were pressed in that case with the police department. I requested any disciplinary action that happened with that case in the police department. I still have not heard back yet. And every case is different, of course, but an officer in Milwaukee was charged and did lose his job because of it. What went into the Racine County D. A. S. Decision not to bring criminal charges to this particular investigator again. All cases are different. Yes, the Racine D. A. Said that the biggest decision maker in this decision to not bring criminal charges was that the investigator in this case who violated policy brought the flat camera information system, the system, the information he got from the system to summit police department right away, and he didn't use it for any personal gain to try to go after this information by himself. She said those two reasons were the biggest reason she did not bring criminal charges. Those were the factors of play. All right, Ben Hanson reporting live. Thank you.