The Shaky Evidence That Flock Cameras Reduce Crime Rates
3 hours ago
- Flock Safety promotes a working paper claiming its ALPR cameras reduce motor vehicle theft by 11%, increase arrests by 15.9%, and reduce recovery time by 0.28 days.
- An analysis by the Institute for Justice finds the study does not demonstrate a causal effect, as crime trends were already improving before camera deployment.
- The study's results are sensitive to weighting; unweighted or population-weighted data show no statistically significant change in theft.
- Factors like COVID-19 lockdowns and the 'Kia Challenge' social media trend were not fully accounted for, complicating the interpretation of the data.
- Flock uses the paper to defend its cameras against backlash, but the Institute for Justice argues the full picture has not been explored.